The Changing Destinies Series: Book Two
by E4me100
Summary: Aka "Innocence and Instinct." When Erin and Kaia joined the Fellowship, they expected nothing to change. But with the addition of these two girls, things quickly become much different than they were before. Tensions rise as both friends and foes are made. Things are seen that cannot be unseen. And something else stirs in the heart of one...Self-insert fic. Pairings: Read the story!
1. Reunited!

_When last we left off, Erin had just arrived in Rivendell after successfully managing to retrieve the powerful Elven Element Bands from King Thranduil and return them to their proper owners. Elrond informed her that he knew of her true origins, and at his request, Arwen was to introduce Erin to their newest guest, who Erin recognized as a girl named Kaia. This book will follow the adventures of the duo, and their involvement in the beginnings of the War of the Ring._

**Disclaimer: I do not own any recognizeable characters, places, or objects from Lord of the Rings.**

The Changing Destinies Series: Book Two

Innocence and Instinct

I stared at the girl that stood in the doorway. "Kaia?"  
She looked just as shocked as me. "...Erin? Is that you?"

"Yes!" I squealed with joy, jumping forward and hugging her tightly. "Oh my gosh, what are you doing here?"

"What am _I _doing here? What are _you _doing here?" she asked. We separated, and I stood in front of my long-time friend, hardly believing my own eyes. "I've been hanging out here in Rivendell for almost a month now!"

"Seriously?" I gawked. "You've been here? I've been going on crazy adventures in Mirkwood since April!"

"I figured!" Kaia beamed. She hugged me tightly again. "Oh my god, this is fucking amazing! I never expected you to be here!"

In the middle of our reunion, I suddenly heard Arwen clear her throat from behind us. I pulled away from Kaia again and turned towards the elleth, who looked terribly lost. "I am sorry to interrupt, but...do you two know each other?"

I grinned again and nodded. "Yeah, man! Kaia's been one of my closest friends for...gosh, I think it's been almost six years, hasn't it?"

"Yeah! Oh my god, that's insane."

I looked back at Arwen. "Do you mind if we catch up?"

"Not at all!" she said with a smile. "It is comforting to know that you two have found each other again."

Without hesitating, the two of us entered Kaia's room and shut the door behind us. It was a pretty spacious room, with a queen sized bed, a large dresser with a mirror atop it, a small but beautiful chandelier on the ceiling, another closet, and a bathroom off to one side. In true Kaia fashion, there were papers with drawings that I could tell she'd done tacked all over the walls.

I walked over to her bed and absentmindedly ran my fingers along the smooth wood. "So..." I said, then turning to look at her with a smile as she sat on her bed. "Where do I start?" Now that I looked at her, I noticed that even in the short month that she'd been in Middle-Earth, she'd changed a bit. Kaia was only an inch or so taller than me, with cinnamon colored skin and incredibly dark brown eyes. Her hair was so brown, it was almost black, and when left natural, it was really, _really _curly. Like, curly fries kind of curly. Back on Earth, she was almost always seen with red, but not obnoxiously red lips, black eyeliner and shadow, and varying graphic t-shirts, dark bottoms, and her signature black Converse sneakers. She was also known for all of the accessories she wore. On her neck she always had a necklace with a shark tooth on a cord, a chain with a bone charm studded with metal, and a black cross. As for her wrists, she would always wear a string that she'd use to play cat's cradle, a big black leather bracelet that she kept a bunch of safety pins clipped to, and a bunch of other random wristbands and such. She also had a silver ring that had waves engraved into it, which she named Virginity, a black cat ring, and always seemed to be wearing stud earrings.

Normally her hair would be straightened and clipped into a messy pile atop her head with a sideband that partially covered her eye, but now it was pulled back into a low ponytail, and the curls were a bit bigger and...flowy-er. If that makes sense. She also obviously wore no makeup, and wore a simple white tunic overtop of black leggings. Her feet were bare, and she only had one necklace, which was a leather cord with a tooth of some kind on it, but not the shark tooth that I'd known for the past six years of my life.

Kaia looked up at me and laughed. "Why do I feel like your story's gonna take all day to tell?"

I laughed, too. "Because it probably will. I've spent the last nine months of my life on the other side of the Misty Mountains. Mostly running errands and doing stuff for Thranduil. He's the King of the elves that live in northern Mirkwood. You know where that is?" I knew that Kaia had seen Lord of the Rings at least once or twice, but she had never been a true fan of the series like me.

Kaia thought for a second. "Yeah...yeah, I think so. Elrond let me look at some of his maps and stuff so I could figure out where the hell I was, you know?"

I nodded. "Yeah. Anyway, I've been running around doing all kinds of crazy stuff for him, and I've also been hanging out in Lothlórien a lot, too. Gosh, that place is so awesome. I like thinking of it as like...my second home or something."

"Really? It sound like a gorgeous place. I'd love to go visit it sometime."

"Maybe we can someday," I shrugged. "But not now. At the moment, I'm trying to stay hidden from Thranduil and his cronies. They're hunting me."

Kaia frowned. "Hunting you? Why?"

I sighed. "While on these crazy adventures, Legolas and I ended up making a mess of things, and put all of Mirkwood in danger of being destroyed. I was sent to fix those mistakes by Galadriel, and in the process ended up getting Thranduil pretty pissed off. He's bound to have search parties sent out to find me and capture me for what I did."

"What did you do?"

I winced. "I wish I could tell you, but I'm sworn to secrecy. Sorry, papaya."

She smiled at the old nickname that I had come up with for her when we met in sixth grade. "It's cool. If you can't tell me, then I won't ask."

I glanced out the window and nodded. "It sucks, though. Legolas and I were super close, and now he probably hates my guts."

After I said that, Kaia tilted her chin up and put on a creepy smile. "Woah now. You and Legolas? As in, the elf you were obsessed with back home?"

I laughed. "Yeah, that one. Actually...I'm not as fangirly over him now as I used to be. I still think he's epic and all...I guess I've just gotten used to having him around as a friend."

Kaia put on a fake pouty face. "Aww, you guys didn't have sex?"

"Shut up!" I laughed and grabbed a pillow off of her bed to hit her with. "No, we're just friends." I abused her for a couple seconds, before letting up on her and stepping back. "So what have you been up to in Rivendell?"

"Well, now I don't want to tell you. My story sucks compared to yours."

I rolled my eyes. "Come on, Kaia. Tell me! It can't be that boring."

"Nothing special, to be honest. I've been focusing on learning how to fight here. It's fun, but really different from what I expected it to be. I'm happy, though. It's going well, and I've got my own sword and everything."

"Awesome!" I smiled and gestured to my own weapons that were still on my body. "I've learned, too. This guy Haldir trained me in Lórien."

"Badass! We should fight sometime."

I laughed. "I already know you'd kick my butt. So have _you _found anyone that you like lately?" I said, elbowing her.

"Erin, really? You know I don't want to date anybody. Guys are douchebags."

I laughed. "You haven't changed, Kaia."

"Good. Wasn't planning on it." I smiled and took a couple of steps away. After awhile, she asked "Hey...when is all that stuff that's in the movies supposed to happen?"

"Not until October," I said. "We've got awhile."

"I guess that means you're staying here with me, huh?"

I turned around and grinned. "Well, duh. I've got no other choice now."

Once Elrond learned that Kaia and I were close friends (we decided to say that she had family that were of Easterling decent, and they had lived in Minas Tirith for awhile when I was there), it didn't take much to convince him to let me stay there. I moved into the room next door to Kaia's, but for a long time, we were practically inseparable. After all, it's not every day you are sucked into Middle-Earth, then discover that your best friend was also in the same situation several months later. The two of us talked openly about things that we used to talk about. Memes, video games, drawing...even our friends and family back home. But it wasn't until several days later, on January third of 3018, that I asked her _the _question.

We were sitting in the foyer of the Last Homely House, just relaxing and enjoying our free time. "Hey Kaia?"

"Yeah?"

I twirled my ring on my finger as I looked over at her from where I was flopped ungracefully across one of the small couches. "How's my family and all of our friends been? Since I left, I mean?"

Kaia sighed. "Dude, it was absolute chaos when you disappeared. Your mom said that one morning she just walked into your room to wake you up, and you were gone. Nowhere to be found."

I cringed. I honestly hadn't thought about all I'd left behind until lately. "How much did they flip tables?"

"Well, naturally your dad found out, and then they both got scared out of their minds and called the police. They reported you missing, and ads were put out all over town for you. Policemen were searching, man. Everyone was scared for you, especially our little group of friends at school," she said.

"Really?"

"Yeah, man. After about...I don't know, a month of searching or so, the police finally gave up and told your parents that there wasn't anything else they could do." She looked at me sadly. "They were heartbroken."

Tears threatened to well up in my eyes at the thought of my parents, who I loved so dearly, being told that their only daughter was gone. "Oh, no..."

Kaia nodded and continued. "After that, they just..." She paused nervously for a second, then continued. "...They pronounced you dead."

My jaw dropped. "WHAT?"

"Well, no one had seen or heard any trace of you for a month, Erin. There really wasn't...I mean, no one could really come up with another answer of what had happened to you other than kidnap and murder."

I stared at her for awhile, taking in what she'd said. "...I guess that makes sense...but...I...what happened after that?"

"They held a funeral service for you at your church. Or, that's what it was like. There just wasn't a coffin or anything. But oh my God...Erin, you should've seen how many people were there. Your family was there, your pastor and his family, everyone from your church...Kenzie, Kathryn, Syd, our whole clan from school...and a bunch of other kids that I guess you knew from band, chorus, art club and stuff." She stopped again for a second, with the most sincere and touched expression on her face. "But I gotta say, the most adorable thing was...was the kids."

I frowned a bit. "Kids? What kids?"

"You helped your aunt teach the preschool Sunday school class, right?"

At the memory, I smiled and nodded. "Those kids are all amazing."

"Yeah, those kids. That's who I'm talking about. Oh God, lemme see if I can get the names...uhh...Emma, Ellie...Tatum, Leigha...the two boys, Kingston and Jreydon, Renaya...Olivia and Eli...you know who I'm talking about, right?"

I nodded again. "None of those kids were older than six, but I love them all." I smiled. "They're so friking cute."

"Yeah, yeah," Kaia said. "Well, guess what they did? During the service, when everyone was going up and making little speeches about how they knew you and stuff, all of those kids got up as a group and went up to the stage, and you know what they did? They sang for you."

My heart almost shattered. "...What?" I asked quietly.

Kaia nodded. "Erin, they sang 'Lucy' for you. But instead of using the name Lucy during the song, they used your name. It was one of the most touching things I've ever seen. Most of them were crying when they were finished."

Tears welled up in my eyes. "Are you serious?" I whispered. 'Lucy' was the name of a song by my favorite band, Skillet. It was a song about a girl that had died that had been close to the band members. "Oh my gosh..."

"I can see why you love those kids so much, man," Kaia said quietly.

"And what about my parents?" I asked. "How did they do?"

Kaia sighed again and leaned back in her chair. "They were pretty broken for awhile. Kenzie, Kathryn and I went over to your house every day after school for awhile after you disappeared, just to go hang out with your parents and talk to them. You know, to make sure they were doing okay."

I smiled at her. "You're awesome, you know that?"

She smiled a bit. "Thanks. Your parents were nice people, man. I felt so bad for them."

"How are they now? I mean, when you last saw them." For a minute, Kaia didn't answer, and I frowned. "Kaia? What's wrong?" She took a deep breath, and it looked like she didn't want to answer my question. I tensed a bit. "Kaia...answer me. What happened to my parents?"

My best friend looked up at me and held my gaze for what seemed like an eternity. "Erin...they...your mom, she...she died of grief in July. She was convinced that she had done something to drive you away. And once she was gone...your dad just wasn't...he...he couldn't deal with losing both his wife and daughter in less than a year. And he..." she paused again. "...he killed himself."

My heart stopped. I gripped the arm of the couch tightly, jaw clenched, staring at Kaia wide-eyed. "...No...no...y-you can't be serious..."

"I'm sorry," Kaia whispered.

It took about three seconds for it to really hit me. When it finally did, tears instantly started spilling down my face, and I dissolved into sobs. It felt like my life had suddenly come skidding to a stop, and someone had punched me in the chest. All of the breath left me, and I found myself gasping for air between sobs. It wasn't possible. My parents...the two people I had looked up to so much in my life...were gone. Gone forever. Even if it was possible for me to go back home, I would have no parents to go back to. I just couldn't wrap my mind around that.

As soon as I started crying, Kaia came over and sat next to me on the couch, hugging me tightly as I cried on her shoulder. After several minutes, something else hit me, and I lifted my face from where it had previously been buried in her dress. "K-Kaia? If you're h-here...in Middle-Earth n-now...doesn't that m-mean that you're going t-to be thought...as d-dead, too?"

She looked down at me, and I could see tears in her eyes. She didn't say anything, just nodded, and I put my head back down and cried even more, for both my and her parents. I had never thought in a million years that me coming to Middle-Earth would result in this.

oOo

_One week later..._

Kaia and I were once again sitting in the foyer of Elrond's home, but this time we weren't crying our eyes out. It still hurt terribly to know that both of my parents were gone, but I knew that there was nothing I could do to help them anymore. I just had to move on. It definitely helped to have Kaia around to talk to. "But you can't eve do that anymore!" I laughed.

"Can I?" she asked, putting a thoughtful finger to her chin and posing.

"Like a sir," I said. We both laughed, and I opened my mouth to speak when I heard the sound of horses outside and frowned. "You hear that?"

Kaia nodded and went to the large window. "Yeah, it's...a bunch of elves. Some dude with blonde hair is at the front...wait, isn't that Legolas?"

My eyes widened. "What? Let me see." I crept up to the window and glanced out for a second. Sure enough, there was Legolas, riding through the gates with the rest of what had to be the search party that was looking for me. "Crap!" I scrambled across the couch and jumped behind one of the big armchairs. "Kaia, answer it! If he asks where I am, just act like you don't know me. Okay?"

"Got it," Kaia said. Not two second later, a sharp knock was heard. I hid my head and listened as Kaia opened the door. "Can I help you?"

I heard Legolas' voice carry in from outside. "Hello, my lady. I am Prince Legolas of Mirkwood. A young lady by the name of Erin fled from my realm recently, and we were asked by my father to search for her. She is charged with treason against the king."

"Really?" Kaia asked. I tensed, fearful that I would be found out. "Hmm...Erin...I don't know the name, but maybe if you described her to me I could help you out."

"She is about your height, though with fairer skin. She has straight brown hair and hazel eyes."

There was silence for a minute. "...Nope. Sorry, there's no one here with that description. If anyone like that shows up, thought, I'll have Elrond let you know."

"Could you inform him to watch for her as well?" Legolas asked.

"Sure!" Kaia said casually.

"Thank you, lady..."

"It's Kaia."

"Ah, Lady Kaia. Farewell," Legolas said.

"Travel safe," Kaia called out as she shut the door. We both waited until the sound of horse hooves on the ground faded away. "You're good, Erin. They're gone."

I sprung up from my position between the couch and wall. "You're a lifesaver, Kaia." I climbed over the couch and held out my hand for her to brofist, which she did. "I owe you one."

She waved it off. "Nah, you're fine. That Legolas kid does look like a prick, though. Glad to see him gone." I laughed, and we headed back upstairs to our rooms.

**A/N: So! Now you know more about Kaia. :3 Yes, she is my best friend in real life. And yes, we have actually known each other since 6th grade. Just a note: she swears a lot. XD If you couldn't already tell, that is. I love her like a sister anyway. So yeah! Hopefully you enjoyed the first chapter! :D Don't forget to review if you get the chance! :)**


	2. Chillin in Elf Country

**A/N: Well! I'm back from my short vacation! :D I had so much fun, and now I can finally get back to writing this story! I went to a lot of awesome concerts at the festival I went to, and now I'm a fan of bands like Disciple, Kutless, and Thousand Foot Krutch. :3 TFK is the biggest one. I'm listening to "Be Somebody" at the moment. Might work in a couple more of my new favorite songs later on...we'll see. ;)**

**Anyway! I won't lie, I only got done this and half of chapter 3 before I left. ^^; I kinda had a brief writer's block as far as how I wanted to introduce some of the characters. Pretty much everyone in the Fellowship has some sort of important relationship with either Erin, Kaia, or both, and I want to make sure I establish that. :) I'll shut up and let you read now, though. **

**OH! And to answer Shadow-Heart-of-Death's lovely review...at this point, Legolas does kinda hate Erin. She basically stole his father's most prized posessions and ran off, and she also deliberately lied to him when she bumped into him during her escape. He feels like she completely threw their friendship out the window and betrayed him, which (of course) will be touched on when they meet up in Rivendell again later on. :)**

Innocence and Instinct: Chapter Two

Life was good in Rivendell for several months after that. Kaia and I had so much free time to do whatever the heck we wanted. It was awesome! We'd go on horse rides together, do short little sparring tournaments, archery, pull pranks on the twins, and just cause general chaos together. It was incredibly fun, though. I'd never felt happier since arriving in Middle-Earth. No one from Mirkwood ever came back to see if I had been through the area...all of the Elemental Bands had been returned...I didn't have to worry about avoiding Haldir anymore...life was great. I didn't have a care in the world, and neither did Kaia. We wasted the days and nights together, spawning new inside jokes and memories, and often recalling the old ones. In fact, thoughts of Frodo and the Ring completely slipped my mind until one day in early October, when Kaia and I were eating dinner with Elrond, Arwen, Elladan, and Elrohir.

It was just casual talk for awhile, as it typically was. Near the end of the meal, Elrond finally cleared his throat to get our attention. "I hate to interrupt your conversations, but I have received word from Gandalf the Grey that a young halfling by the name of Frodo Baggins is currently traveling through the Wild to come here."

"A Halfling?" Elrohir asked incredulously. "All alone? It is unlikely he will ever make it here, then."

Elrond shot a glance of disapproval at his younger son, then continued. "He is not alone. Mithrandir also informed me that the young boy is in the company of Aragorn. Frodo's gardener, Sam, has also come along." At the ranger's name, I glanced over at Arwen, whose eyes lit up at the mention of her lover. "He is unsure when the three of them are to arrive, but it is of the utmost importance that Frodo makes it here safely above all else."

"Why?" Elladan asked. "What is so important about him?"

"It is not the halfling himself," Elrond said lowly, "it is what he carries. Frodo is the bearer of the One Ring of Power."

You could feel the tension in the room increase tenfold.

There was silence for a long time, until Elladan finally broke it. "...And he intends to bring it here? Of all places? Ada, you cannot possibly be alright with this."

"It's not like the kid has anywhere else to go," Kaia retorted. "Rivendell is probably the safest place to keep it for the time being."

"But it would put our realm in danger!" Elladan argued. "Does he not know the evil that ring possesses?"

I glared at Elladan. "If Frodo didn't know what that Ring could do, do you think he'd be traveling across Middle-Earth with some random ranger he's never even met before to bring it here?" Elladan opened his mouth to say something, but didn't.

"Both Erin and Kaia are correct," Elrond said. "Frodo is well aware of the burden he bears. And I also agree that it cannot stay in Rivendell forever. Sauron will learn of this eventually, and he will attack this haven. When he does, we will be powerless to stop his forces."

"Pessimist," Kaia muttered, but only I heard her.

Once again, it was quiet. "...So what do we do?" Elrohir asked.

"I am still unsure of that," Elrond answered. "I have sent word to all the lands of Middle-Earth that they are to send a representative to Rivendell to attend a secret council that will be held in a few weeks. It is there that they will decide the fate of the Ring."

"What do we do until then?" Kaia asked. "Do we just wait?"

"No," Arwen suddenly spoke up from her seat. "We must do something to help Frodo...if we can."

"And what did you have in mind, dear sister?" Elladan asked sarcastically.

Arwen had no answer for that, so it was me that spoke next. "Well..we could at least send someone out to meet up with them. I'm sure that Frodo probably had some sort of enemy on his tail. And whoever goes should go on a horse. That way they can move things along a bit faster."

Elrond thought about that for a minute, then nodded. "I believe that could be arranged. Perhaps we could send-"

"I will go."

Everyone except me looked at Arwen with a shocked expression. Elladan was the first to respond. "Arwen, no. If anything, Elrohir or I should go."

"Yes," she said firmly. She then looked to her father, pleading. "Ada, please. I can reach them, I am the fastest rider out of the three of us."

Elrond shook his head. "It would be too dangerous. I was thinking we could send Lord Glorfindel instead."

"Actually, I think Arwen should go," I said. Now it was everyone's turn to look at me with 'wtf' expressions. "If she's the faster rider, she can reach them quicker. And she was born and raised here, so she'll know the surrounding territory well."

Elrond looked from me to his daughter doubtfully. "...I do not think that-"

"Arwen, how good are you with a blade?" I asked.

She smiled. "Good enough to defend myself. Ada, please let me go. I will be fine."

"There you go," I said. "She can ride fast and wield a sword. I think that's plenty enough reason for her to go."

There was another moment of silence as Elrond thought. Finally, he sighed. "If it would please you, then...yes, Arwen, you may go."

The dark-haired woman beamed. "Oh, thank you Ada!"

"But!" Elrond said. "You must promise me that you will be safe."

"I promise, Ada."

"Very well. You do not have to prepare to leave yet. I just got word of this from Mithrandir this morning, and I imagine that the halfling and his companions will not reach our surrounding territory for at least two weeks." Elrond stood. "Feel free to remain at the table for as long as you would like. I shall return to my studies." With that, he left the room, and not long after a servant came and cleared his dishes.

"Well!" Kaia said, looking at me. "Guess I'm about done. I'm gonna go out to the archery range and finish practicing. You want to come?"

"Yeah, just give me a minute," I said as I scraped the last few bites of food off of my plate. "I'll come out there soon. You go ahead." Kaia nodded and left the room, and Arwen followed soon after. I sat at the table joking around with the twins for a couple more minutes before getting up and heading out to the archery range as well.

oOo

(October 23rd, 3018)

I sat in a tree just above the gates of Rivendell, holding a thin wooden board given to me by Arwen and pressing the piece of paper up against it as I sketched. I had just started doodling a picture of Kaia and I goofing off with our weapons. Lately, she had taken to using two shorter elven blades as her weapon of choice, whereas I decided I was better with a single sword than a bow and arrow, and had been strengthening my skills with that. I was just finishing up drawing the details on Kaia's too-big armor, when suddenly I saw something weaving quickly down the path towards the gates. I looked away from my drawing and stared at the blur longer until I saw that it was Arwen, running as fast as she could up to the entrance while carrying someone in her arms. "Frodo!" I whispered, quickly jumping down from the tree and running up to the guards. _"Edro annon!" _(Open the gates!)I cried urgently. They did so, and I ran out to meet Arwen as she slowed to catch her breath "Arwen! Oh gosh, are you okay?"

She ignored my question. "Get my father," she said breathlessly. "Frodo is wounded."

I almost smacked myself as I nodded and turned to run back inside. How could I have forgotten about Frodo being stabbed by a Nazûl? I ran as fast as I could, bursting into the house and whipping my head around. "Where is Elrond?" I shouted. "Lord Elrond!" Several servants heard my cries for him, and ran off to find their master. A few moments later, he came flying down the stairs and ran up to me, with the twins and a servant behind him. "Elrond! Oh, thank God!"

He looked at me, looking freaked out. "Erin? What is wrong?"

"Frodo's here!" I told him. "He and Arwen just arrived. They need you. He's been hurt."

At this, Elrond's eye widened, and I ran with him back out to where Arwen was just now getting inside the gates, still holding Frodo in her arms. She looked about ready to collapse, so I took Frodo from her, and she nodded her thanks.

"Erin," Elrond said. I turned around to face him, and the elf lord bent down to examine him. I took the opportunity to look at him, too. He still had that gross, crusty green stuff all over his face that I remember seeing in the movies, and his eyes were closed. His skin was terribly pale and cold. Elrond looked very disturbed by this. "What in the name of the Valar happened, Arwen?" he asked.

"He was stabbed by a Morgul blade," she explained. "He is fading. Aragorn and the others are still in the wilderness. He assured me they would arrive shortly, but they were being followed by the Nine."

Elrond's eyebrows shot up at this. "The Nine? They are coming here?"

She shook her head. "No. The river destroyed them for the time being."

"Erin," Elrond said, "bring Frodo along and come with me. We must get him to a room where I can cleanse and heal him."

Nothing else needed to be said. I shifted his weight in my arms so that I could hold him up better and made my way into the Last Homely House, following the master healer in front of me. Frodo wasn't all that heavy, really. He was lighter than I expected him to be for a hobbit. Then again, he probably hadn't been eating as much during the last few weeks. I glanced down at him again as we went up some stairs. It felt kinda cool to be carrying the Ringbearer in my arms, I won't lie.

Eventually, we made our way up into the guest wing, and Frodo was given the room across the hall from Kaia's. I gently placed him down on the bed, and then left the room to give Elrond some space. After a couple of minutes, I decided to head out to the training grounds, where Kaia would most likely be at this point.

I was right. She was practicing a couple of moves that we'd just learned last week. "Kaia!" I shouted.

She spun around, dropping her blades. "Jesus, Erin! You scared the shit out of me!"

"Sorry," I apologized quickly, "but guess what? Frodo's here!"

"Seriously? Where?"

I pointed behind me. "Up in the room across from us. But we can't go see him yet. He's hurt, and Elrond has to heal him first."

She nodded. "But Erin...you know what this means, right?"

I sighed and nodded. "Yup. The Council will be in a few days. Which means Legolas is gonna show up any day now."

She grinned. "Want me to be your bodyguard?"

I laughed. "Yeah. You can beat him up if he threatens me." We both laughed at that for a moment, but then I shook my head. "But seriously, no. I'll be fine."

"What are you gonna do when he sees you here?"

I shrugged. "Dunno. I'll probably just end up talking to him and explaining what happened. But for now, we should probably get back to the house. I want to be there when everyone else shows up so we can meet everybody."

She smiled. "Race you up there!" Then Kaia took off running up the hill.

"Hey!" I shouted. "Cheater!" I followed after her, anyways.

oOo

When we got back to the house, we went to see how Frodo was doing. Elrond was still in the middle of trying to heal him, but when Kaia asked what we could do help, he told us that we could wait at the gates for the others to arrive and let them know what was going on. Of course, Kaia and I were ecstatic about this, and were more than willing to sit out by the gates and wait for the arrival of the others.

We sat just outside the wall, our backs leaned up against the smooth stone, for about an hour or so before the first person arrived. And what an entrance he made, too! I'll never forget watching as a giant eagle landed a few yards in front of us and staring in awe as Gandalf climbed off of his back.

As he approached us and the eagle took off again, Kaia stood up and applauded him. "Bravo! And excellent show, my good man."

The old wizard looked up at her voice, and to my surprise, grinned from under his bushy grey beard when he saw her. "Kaia!"

She laughed and ran to him, allowing him to pull her into a hug. "Hey, Gandalf! How've you been?"

"I've had better days," he said with a wink. They both laughed, and I stood up and walked over to them, poking Kaia in the back.

"Well! When were you going to tell me you had made friends already?" I asked.

Gandalf's gaze flicked to me. "Are you a friend of Kaia's? I do not believe we've met, my dear."

I smiled and held out my hand. "I'm Erin. It's a pleasure to meet you, Gandalf. I've heard so much about you!"

Gandalf returned the smile, but it disappeared a moment later. "Has Frodo arrived?"

"Yes," I said, "but unfortunately he's been stabbed by a Morgul blade." The wizard's eyes grew fearful at this. "He's in the hands of Elrond now. Would you like us to take you to him? I'm sure that he would be glad to know you've arrived, Gandalf."

He nodded quickly. "Please do." Kaia and I walked with him up to Frodo's room, telling him all we knew along the way. Once we reached the doorway, Gandalf placed a hand on the knob, then paused and turned to look at us. "You two know about the Council of Elrond, then?" he said quietly.

"Yep," Kaia nodded.

"Had Lord Elrond invited you to be a part of it?"

It suddenly dawned on me that he hadn't, really. "...No," I said. "He told us about it, but...he never blatantly said that we were allowed to go. I was hoping we could, though." To Kaia, I said "I'll ask him about it later."

"Erin." I looked back at Gandalf. "Whatever you do, do not speak of the council to any others. Word of it must not get past those who are invited. Our enemy had more spies then you know."

I nodded in understanding. "Got it."

"And same to you, my dear Kaia."

She agreed as well. "I won't tell anyone else. I swear."

The old wizard gave us one last nod of farewell before slipping into Frodo's room, and I turned to my friend. "Well! I guess we should head back out to the gates, shouldn't we?"

"Yeah, probably. Whoever else was traveling with Frodo is bound to show up sooner or later." We started off down the hallway, headed back the way we'd come.

"Kaia?" I asked.

"Hmm?"

"How did you meet Gandalf?"

"He's pretty close with Elrond, so he's been here to visit a couple times since I showed up. I love the old guy. He's like my grandpa, you know?"

I smiled. "Yeah, he's great. He's pretty awesome in the movies, too. You shall not pass!" I said, doing a horrible impression of his voice.

Kaia burst out laughing. "Oh Lord, I forgot about that! Oddly enough, he didn't let me pass." We both laughed as we went out to be Elrond's lookout again.

**A/N: Just as a random side note, when I was spellchecking this, Open Office suggested "Aladdin" in place of "Elladan." That made me lol. XD Hope you're enjoying the story so far! :D Next chapter, we'll see the arrival of more people, and possibly the Council of Elrond! Who knows! Don't forget to review!**


	3. Not So Happy Meetings

**A/N: Hello, my wonderful readers! ^^ Are you excited to get into the movie plot today? I am! :D Before I forget to tell you...the cover image is silhouettes of Kaia and I. I'm on the left, and Kaia's on the right. She's got her blade that she uses, and I've got my bow. :3 And now...IT BEGINS!**

Innocence & Instinct: Chapter Three

Kaia's POV

Awhile later, Erin and I met the next traveling party. We hadn't seen any sign of Legolas all day (which made Erin a lot happier), and the next guests we did meet arrived late that night. I was up on watch when they showed up, and Erin was stretched out on the ground next to me sleeping. As soon as I heard the faint sound of footsteps and voices coming towards us, I poked her in the side with my foot. "Erin! Get up! We got visitors!" She mumbled something I didn't catch, but didn't get up. I rolled my eyes, and this time gave her a semi-gentle kick to the side. "ERIN! Get off your lazy ass and get up!"

At this, she slowly rolled over onto her stomach and sat up. "Do you really need to be so rough?"

"Yeah," I said with a grin. "'Cause you're too lazy to get up by yourself."

"Hey, I can't help it that I'm American! It's in my blood!" We both laughed, then stopped when a very weird looking group of people came around the bend. Well...I guess I should've learned to expect weird from this world by now.

In front of us, there were four people. One of them was a tall guy with dark hair and muted blue eyes, with the beginnings of a scruffy beard on his chin. He looked like the rugged, outdoorsy type, dressed in layers of clothes that were all pretty dark colors, and lots of leather. He had a sword at his hip, and I could see a couple more knives on him. A dark grey cloak covered his back, and the hood was pulled up over his head.

The other three guys were like...midgets. Midgets that were fat, but not in that gross 'size XXXXXXXXXL' kind of way. They were just chubby. They all had curly hair, and wore no shoes. I cringed mentally at the sight of their feet, though. Those fuckers were HUGE! And they had gross, curly hair on them. And they were dirty. They all were kinda different in their own way, though.

One of the midgets walked right up to me with a curious look in his blue eyes. He reminded me of my little brother Harrison, but older. He had ginger hair, and wore a bright blue jacket with a white undershirt, brown pants, and a tweed-colored scarf with maroon stitching. Upon seeing me up close, he frowned. "You're not an elf!"

"Pippin!" Another one ran up behind him and smacked him across the head as I laughed. This one had sandy blonde hair, deep green eyes, and wore a dark green jacket, a yellow vest, white undershirt, and also had brown pants on. He looked up at me. "Sorry about that, miss. He can be...stupid...sometimes."

I laughed again. "No, it's cool. I don't mind."

I noticed that the tall guy was looking at Erin and I with interest, particularly Erin. He turned to her. "We've met before. It is Erin, yes?"

She smiled. "Hey! Long time no see, A-Strider!" She pointed to me. "This is my friend, Kaia."

He looked over at me. His gaze was...intimidating, but not in a bad way. He had an air of authority about him. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Lady Kaia."

I waved a hand. "Kaia is fine on its own. Same to you, Strider."

He smiled. "And are you two our welcoming party?"

"Yup," I said.

"Well, you are doing a fine job."

I grinned. "I like you already."

He chuckled. "Good. I would hate to make an enemy before even setting foot into Rivendell." I laughed too. This Strider guy...he seemed pretty cool. Now that I thought about it...wasn't he that one guy that was some sort of long-lost king or something? I'd ask Erin later.

Erin smiled and looked at the rest of the midgets. "And who's everyone else?"

The blonde midget piped up. "We're hobbits! Shirefolk...Halflings, I guess you Big Folk would say. I'm Merry."

"Pippin!" The ginger shouted out.

"And that's Sam." Merry pointed to another hobbit, who was standing next to his two short friends. He had dirty blonde hair, and he wore a white (who would've guessed it?) undershirt, a tweed jacket, and brown pants. He was the chubbiest, I noticed. He seemed kinda quiet, but smiled up at us anyway.

"Oh! And I'm Erin, by the way," My best friend waved at them. They waved back, and I smiled. I liked Merry and Pippin, too.

"Do you know where Mr. Frodo is, Kaia and Erin?" Sam asked hesitantly.

"Of course," Erin said. "We'll take you to him, but I don't know if Elrond will let you in his room for too long. He might still be trying to heal him." Erin turned and started walking back up to Elrond's house, and the hobbits diligently followed, then Strider, and I walked behind him, bringing up the rear. I could already tell that Sam was the loyal one, because he looked like he wanted to take off running towards the room, if Erin hadn't been guiding him there.

"So...Strider," I said, stepping up next to him. "Where are you from?"

"I am a ranger of the North," he replied. "We are..nomadic, in a sense. We do not truly live anywhere."

"Oh. I'm from Minas Tirith. You know, down south?"

He chuckled. "Yes, I am familiar with it."

"You close with Elrond?"

"Yes. He acted as a father figure for me when I was much younger."

I glanced up at him. "Wait...did your parents?.."

Strider nodded. "My father died when I was very young. My mother brought me to live here and also died not long after."

"Oh, that's terrible! I'm so sorry, man."

He smiled a bit. "It was certainly not of your doing, Kaia. You have nothing to apologize for."

"Oh, you know what I mean." We both chuckled a bit. I talked to Strider a bit more on our walk up to Frodo's room. He seemed like a nice guy to hang out with, and apparently he was an amazing swordsman. He had just finished telling me about how he and the hobbits had been attacked by Nazgûl at a place called Weathertop, at Pippin's request, when we arrived at Frodo's room. That was another thing I noticed about him...he was really modest. Like he felt uncomfortable talking about awesome stuff he did.

Erin stopped by a door and pointed at it. "This is Frodo's room." Before she'd even finished her sentence, Sam had burst into the room, paused for a second to locate Frodo, and then ran to the other hobbit's bedside, a terrified look on his face.

I stepped up next to Erin in the doorway after the others filed inside. There he lay, eyes closed on his bed, a few stray curls of his dark brown hair drooping into his face. At the very least, he didn't look deathly pale. Sam was still freaking out like he was laying in a coffin, though. "Mr. Frodo! Wake up, Mr. Frodo, wake up!"

Gandalf stepped up behind Sam and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Do not try to wake him, Samwise. It is useless. Frodo will recover quickly if we give him time to rest and stop fussing over him." At that point I realized that Gandalf must've been in here the entire time.

Sam looked up at him with and unsure face. "...Well...could I at least sit here with him? Just...just to watch?"

The kind old wizard smiled down at him, like a father to a child. "I don't see why not."

Relief flooded Sam's features, and I smiled to myself as well. Pippin and Merry also chose to linger for a few minutes, but Strider left the room after saying hi to everybody. I watched as the hobbits walked to and fro around the room, poking and inspecting things like curious toddlers would.

Suddenly, Erin's voice caught my attention. "Kaia."

I looked over at her. "Hm?"

"Let's go talk to Elrond about the council. I want to see if we can convince him to let us go."

I turned to my friend. "Sounds cool. Where is he?"

Erin pointed across the room to where the master healer was talking quietly with Gandalf, then made her way over to them, dragging me along with her. "Lord Elrond?"

The elf turned his attention from Gandalf to her. "Yes, Erin?"

"Sorry if I'm interrupting you guys, but I wanted to ask you something."

"And what would that be?"

Erin thought about how to phrase it for a second, then shook her head and just decided to be blunt. "Kaia and I want to go to the secret council. Can we?"

Her straightforwardness caught both Gandalf and Elrond off guard, though it was easier to see in the latter. "Why do you ask this?" He partially looked at me as he said this, straightening up a bit.

I shrugged. "To represent women." I'd bet five hundred dollars he hadn't invited any other women to the meeting.

"And besides, I don't want to be left out of such a big event. We both have as much of a right to be there as anyone else," Erin added. "Plus, it's not like we're gonna argue with everybody there. We can keep ourselves in line for long enough."

Elrond chuckled. "Somehow I doubt that. However, I will allow you to go..."

"Yes!" Erin did a quick fist-pump.

"..on one condition," he finished.

She pouted. "What's that?"

He looked at both of us very seriously this time. "I want both of you to take into consideration what you say and do at this council. There will be representatives from all across Middle-Earth there, and the last thing we need in dark times such as these is rifts between nations. These kingdoms are broken enough as it is." He sighed, then said one last thing. "You must promise me that you will not get yourselves into too much trouble."

"I promise," I said immediately. "Think before you speak and act."

Erin nodded as well. "And I promise as well. We won't do anything we can't handle." I glanced over at her, getting what she was hinting at.

Elrond seemed okay with it, though, because he just nodded. "Excellent. Now, as Gandalf stated earlier, I believe it would be best to let Frodo get some rest. He will need his strength."

We smiled and said our goodbyes, then walked out of the room together. As soon as Erin shut the door, I gripped her arm and looked at her. "You're still planning on joining the Fellowship, right?"

She scoffed. "That's a stupid question. Of course!"

oOo

Erin's POV

The next day, Kaia and I stopped in to see Frodo at about eight in the morning. He was still sleeping when we stopped by, and Gandalf was sitting in a chair by his bedside. Sam was curled up on the floor next to his master, breathing deeply. We said hi to the wizard and asked about Frodo, who apparently hadn't woken up yet, but was expected to sometime that morning. In the meantime, Kaia suggested that we walk around Rivendell for a bit and just hang out before coming back later. I agreed to that, mostly because I was getting nervous about Legolas arriving for the council.

I tried not to make it obvious, but Kaia must've noticed, because as we walked outside on that particularly gorgeous October day, she looked up at me. "Erin, seriously. Stop worrying about it."

I met her gaze for a moment. She was wearing a dress with two layers today. The under layer was a creamy color with a low square neckline and short sleeves, and the outer layer was simply a loose, bright red drape that only had one strap which went over her left shoulder. There was a wide slit in the red layer that reached up to her knee, exposing some of the lighter color underneath. She also wore brown sandals and a golden necklace with red and white gems. Her hair was loose and hanging down, as it usually was. "Sorry, Kaia. But..." I sighed. "It's gonna be so awkward, man. I just have no clue what to say."

"I know," she said. "Hey, it'll be fine. You'll figure it out. You always do," she smiled.

I laughed. "Thanks." I stopped walking momentarily and leaned up against a railing on the side of an outdoor walkway. We were high above the ground, and from where I was standing, I got a gorgeous view of Rivendell and the main gardens of Elrond's house. The front gate was where my eyes lingered, though. I let out a breath again and smoothed my own dress. I had decided to wear a much simpler gown, with only one layer that was a rich, vibrant purple, sleeveless, and had golden trim at the waist and top of the dress. My hair was pulled back into a long plait, and I had even stuck a couple of purple and golden flowers into it as we had walked through the gardens earlier that morning. "I just hope he'll let me explain myself a bit. Maybe he's even forgotten about it."

Kaia rolled her eyes. "You can't be serious. Erin, you know he didn't forget it. There's no damn way he'd forget something like that."

"Hey, a girl can dream," I said, smiling a bit. I decided to change the subject after that. "You are planning on coming with me and the rest of the Fellowship, right?"  
"I'm hoping to," she said. "Rivendell's nice, don't get me wrong, but...God, it's too quiet around here. I'm getting bored. I want to get out and see the rest of this world that apparently you love so much."

I nodded. "I know what you mean. Personally, I'm excited to see Minas Tirith later on. That's gotta be one of my favorite places in Middle-Earth."

Kaia was silent for a moment. When she spoke again, she was looking at me with concern. "Erin, are they even going to let us join the Fellowship?"

I frowned. "They who?"

"You know, like...Elrond and the other members."

I shrugged. "I don't see why they wouldn't."

"Erin, you and I both know how fucking sexist Middle-Earth is. Even if we can go, we won't be able to go without a fight. They're probably gonna start spouting some bullshit like 'Oh, they'll hold us back,' 'they can't defend themselves,' 'they'll just get in the way...'"

"First of all," I began, "you and I have both been training to fight for quite some time now. That won't be an issue. Second, I have no intention whatsoever to get in the way. I want to help them. And third, I guarantee that we'll be able to keep up with them. We'll have to, since we won't have any other option."

Kaia rolled her eyes. "Good luck trying to convince a bunch of sexist men that."

"Oh, come on. You really don't think that-" Suddenly, I saw Kaia tense and look over to the entrance to the Last Homely House. I followed her gaze and watched as none other than Boromir, son of Denethor rode through the stone archway and slowed his horse. His eyes flicked around quickly, taking in the scenery of the elf haven, and several of Elrond's servants came up to him, welcoming him and offering to take his horse. I started to laugh a bit as I saw his slightly confused expression, since he didn't speak any elvish, but he gave them his horse and allowed them to take him inside anyway.

Kaia looked over a me, eyebrow raised. "Who's that?"

"Boromir," I said. "You probably won't like him." I looked back down at him, and laughed again as he almost walked into a pillar from staring at the nature around him as he walked. But not a moment later, the laughter died on my lips and another party arrived, this one a group of three elves. Two of them were dark-haired, but the one in the front was the one that I tensed at seeing.

My best friend also spotted him. "Shit. Why is he here already?" I glanced over and saw her glaring down at him.

"It's how everything was timed in the movie," I said quietly, like he could hear me so much as breathe from up here. "The council will probably be tomorrow." I looked back down at Legolas, and regretted it instantly. He slid smoothly off of his horse just like he was supposed to, and as soon as he set foot on the ground, he looked up and around at his surroundings, smiling to himself. This time, however, he stopped as soon as he saw me standing on a balcony far above him. I saw his brow furrow, and the joy in his eyes was quickly replaced by bitterness as he recognized my face. I stared right back for a moment, refusing to let him see how nervous I was because of him, before turning and walking briskly away from my spot, heading back down into the house of Elrond.

Kaia was a step behind me. "What are you doing?"

"He's already seen me," I said through slightly clenched teeth. "He'll want to talk to me, I'm sure." We quickly made our way down a couple flights of stairs until we were just outside of the grand foyer. I pressed my body against the wall, motioning for Kaia to do so, and listened as Legolas came inside and talked to Arwen. After a few seconds, I heard him start to wrap their conversation up, and looked over at Kaia. "Get out of here."

She blinked, confused. "The hell? Why? Don't you need me to beat him up?"

I shook my head. "I'll be fine. He wouldn't hurt me."

"Erin, you don't know that."

I stared at her, unamused. "Kaia, this is Legolas we're talking about. He'll be pissed at me, I'm sure, but there's no way he'd ever hit me or anything. Hitting a girl is like a crime for him."

Kaia locked eyes with me for a moment longer, then finally narrowed her eyes and gave up. "Fine. But if you get beat up, I'm not gonna help fix you later on." Without another word, she turned and disappeared.

Not a moment too soon, either. About two seconds after she disappeared from sight, Legolas stepped out into the hallway, stopping in his tracks when he saw me. I stood in front of him, a few feet away. Neither of us spoke for awhile. We just stood there, staring each other down.

Finally, it was he who broke the silence. "...You have been here the entire time?"

I nodded. "Yep."

He took a step closer, frustration pinching his features. "The girl on the balcony. She told me you were not here."

"She's a friend of mine from back home," I explained coolly. I dropped my gaze a bit. "I...I can't apologize for what I did, though."

"Erin..." I looked back up at him, expecting to see him glaring at me, but what I saw instead caught me off guard. Legolas looked mad, yes, but...he also looked concerned. "Why?"

"I had no other choice, Legolas. Galadriel, she...she sent me a vision through a dream. Your father tried to fight off the darkness with his new powers, but...it consumed him. He wasn't able to bear all of it by himself. He went insane trying to kill all of his enemies, and destroyed all of Mirkwood in the process. Including you." Legolas' blue eyes widened a bit at this, but other than that he showed no reaction. "I saw your death, Legolas. I saw your city burn. I didn't want that to happen, so I went back to Lórien, and Galadriel helped me form a plan to stop it from happening. I had to take the rings back."

He shook his head. "And you could not have let me know about it?"

"You wouldn't have agreed with me."

He glared at me. "Erin, if it needed to be done-"

"No, Legolas," I said firmly. This time is was I that stepped closer, and I lowered my voice considerably, changing my tone. "I know you. You would've followed your father."

"Not if I knew that it would lead to his downfall!" he hissed.

"But you wouldn't have known that."

"If you would have told me about it, Erin-"

"You wouldn't have believed me!" I said sharply. "And even if you had, it was my task and my task alone." After a moment, I added "...You couldn't have helped me."

Legolas' gaze was pretty intimidating at this point. "So you lied to me? You deliberately lied to me just to cover up your tracks?" I tried to say something, but he cut me off. "I trusted you, Erin! I thought you were a friend that I could keep close. Apparently not."

Now I glared back, suddenly incredibly mad at him. "I never asked to be dragged along with you in the first place. It was only because of your father that I even went to get the rings for you!"

"You could have said no to him!"

I scoffed. "Yeah, right. I had no power, and he knew it. If I'd had it my way, I would've gone alone."

He smirked. "And how would that have worked for you when you were battling a spider on your own?"

My blood boiled at the mention of that. Now he was just trying to blow up his own ego. "I don't know. Why don't you tell me how it felt being whipped by a bunch of idiotic Orcs first! I thought elves were supposed to be stronger than them!"

"If you had not-"

"Don't you dare blame that on me, blondie!" I shot back. "If it wasn't for me, you would've been dead a long time ago! Either that, or completely alone with no help whatsoever!"

Legolas was silent for a moment. "...When last I looked, that did not give you the right to betray me. Perhaps I was right to leave you in the wilderness alone!"

It took all I had not to punch him again. "Apparently you can't get this through your thick head. I left you because I had to. I returned the rings because I had to. If I could've done it any other way, I would've. Trust me."

He scoffed. "I doubt I can trust a thing you say anymore! You always get into trouble, and you drag me into the middle of it! Can you not go bother someone else for once? You do not even belong here!"

That did it. Without warning, I drew my arm back and hit him in the jaw. His head snapped back a bit, and he grunted in pain. When he looked back at me, eyes blazing, I shot daggers at him, too. "Get out."

"I beg your pardon?"  
"GET. OUT." I said firmly. "GO. AWAY. We're done here."

He still glared at me. "Erin, if you-"

"GET THE HELL OUT." My arm twitched, and I readied to hit him again if I needed to.

Legolas opened his mouth to say something, then thought against it and quickly brushed past me, heading off down the hallway. I stood where I was for a moment, calming down, and thinking about everything that had just happened. After about a minute of this, I stormed off to go find Kaia. Hopefully she wouldn't mind me ranting for awhile.


	4. A Council to Remember

Innocence & Instinct: Chapter Four

Erin's POV

I sat in one of the small chairs that formed a circle on one of Elrond's many open balconies, my elbow propped up onto the armrest and my fist holding up my head. I was dressed in a simple dress that was solid pale pink, with a bit of white trim underneath, and a matching pink drape that had at one point been draped across my shoulders, but had now slid down so that it rested at my elbows. My hair hung long and straight, save for two braids on either side of my head that were medium thickness and pulled around to meet in the back. Two more individual locks of hair hung out over the front of my ears, and my green eyes stared off into space as I waited for the council to begin. Everyone was here except Elrond, and there was a bit of idle conversation between some of those gathered here, but not much. Things were tense; you could easily tell.

Kaia sat next to me, dressed in a similar fashion, though her clothes were all a clean white, and she had a two-string golden belt with a leaf charm set on her hips. Her hair was twisted into one thick braid, and she was playing with the end of it absentmindedly.

I quickly scanned the crowd of people again. There was Frodo, Gandalf, a couple of random elves, Legolas, Figwit, some dwarves, Gimli, some men, Boromir, another dude, Aragorn, then Kaia, and then me. Elrond's chair was next to mine, but it was still empty.

"Is he usually late for stuff like this?" Kaia asked.

I shook my head. "No. I have no idea what's going on." Some loud mumbling caught my attention, and I glanced over to where the dwarves sat, grumbling insults and shooting nasty looks at the elves nearby. My gaze then flicked to Frodo, who uncomfortably shifted in his chair. He looked up at me with his blue eyes and offered a warm but uncertain smile and wave. I smiled and returned it.

At that moment, a sudden hush fell over the crowd as Elrond emerged from the hallways of his house and walked swiftly out into the open area. His chair (obviously) was bigger than the others, and as he stood in front of it at full height with a serious and grim gaze, I couldn't help but grin a bit. "Bring forth the Ring, Mr...Anderson," I said quietly, getting a chuckle out of Kaia.

Once it was dead silent, Elrond looked over us all, letting it linger, before he finally spoke. "Strangers from distant lands, friends of old, you have been summoned here to answer the threat of Mordor." His gaze swept back over the crowd. "Middle-Earth stand upon the brink of destruction. None can escape it."

In the middle of his speech, I felt eyes on me, and looked up to see Legolas looking my way before quickly averting his gaze. I also noticed Boromir specifically looking at Kaia and I, as if wondering what the frick we were doing there.

"You will unite or you will fall," Elrond continued, bringing my attention back to him as I straightened and sat back in my chair. "Each race is bound to this fate, to this one doom!" All eyes followed his as the elven lord looked to the small hobbit on the edge of it all. "Bring forth the Ring, Frodo."

He extended a hand, and I watched carefully as Frodo slid off of his chair and walked forward, drawing something from his pocket as he did so. He walked up to the small pedestal that was in between Elrond and I, and slowly placed the tiny golden band that was causing all this trouble on it, in plain sight.

I could feel the atmosphere change immensely as soon as he set it down. A few soft whispers floated throughout the crowd. Some leaned forward a bit, trying to get a good look at the thing. What I felt, though, it was the weirdest thing. It felt like someone had intensely increased the pressure of the air so that it was almost bearing down on me and suffocating. For a brief moment, I felt a faint pulse of energy, and the faintest whisper of some black speech in my head. I looked to my right to see if Kaia was feeling the same way.

She looked like she was affected by it too, but differently than I. Her head was cocked slightly to the side, and her eyes wide with curiosity. Without ever looking away, she whispered to me "...That's it? The Ring?"

I nodded. "Yes."

Frodo had returned to his seat, and exhaled as he sat down. I looked back at the Ring, still feeling the pressure of before, but all of a sudden I felt a buzzing heat on my right hand. I glanced down to see the Ring of Unity seemingly glowing and pulsating as well, as if trying to fight off the evil that the One Ring emitted. Frowning, I tried to better conceal it from view so I didn't draw attention to myself.

That was when Boromir got up. "In a dream," he began, "I saw the eastern sky grow dark. He touched his forehead briefly, then took a tentative step forward. "But in the west, a pale light lingered. Voices crying 'Doom is near at hand!'" He continued to move closer to the pedestal. I knew what was coming, so I tensed, ready to jump at him if I needed to. "'Isildur's bane is found!'" His rough hand reached out, fingers dangling, about to brush the golden metal. Gandalf and Elrond shared a look. "..Isildur's bane..."

"BOROMIR!" Elrond and I shouted at once, the former jumping up from his seat. I was about to give the guy a proper yelling at, when suddenly the sky grew grim and dark. I looked up, freaking out as black clouds rolled in overhead. Everything started shaking, like there was an earthquake or something. Atontarya grew hotter on my finger, and the pulsating more prominent. Kaia jumped in her seat, startled, and everyone else started looking around in bewilderment. Above it all, you could hear the distorted, twisted voice of what sounded like Gandalf as he rose from his chair and stepped forward, reciting the verse of the Ring in the Black Speech of Mordor loudly. Boromir stepped back in fright, and the speech of Sauron brought a slight pain to my head.

Boromir finally decided to stop being an idiot for a moment and took his seat as Gandalf finished and returned to his as well. The darkness lifted, as did the pain. Surprisingly, I heard heavy breathing beside me and looked over to see Kaia holding a hand to her head and slightly slouched forward, with a grimace on her face. I reached over and lightly touched her arm, and noticed that Aragorn was also looking at her with concern. Before I could say anything to her, though, Elrond spoke again.

He was almost glaring at the Istari. "Never before has any voice uttered the words of that tongue here in Imladris."

"I do not ask your pardon, Master Elrond." Gandalf actually sounded a bit winded from his little trick. "The Black Speech of Mordor may yet be heard in every corner of the west!" With a pointed sneer at Boromir, he added "The Ring is altogether evil!"

I looked back to Kaia, who was still just now getting her breath back. "Kaia? What's wrong?" She just shook her head, and both of us looked up at Boromir's next outburst.

"It is a gift!" he announced, standing up again.

I rolled my eyes. "Here we go."

"A gift to the foes of Mordor! Why not use this ring?"

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Kaia said rather loudly.

Boromir turned to her. "I beg your pardon?"

Before anyone could stop her, my friend stood as well, stepping forward as if to challenge the Gondorian. "Didn't you hear what Gandalf just said? It's evil! Bad! No touch!"

Boromir scowled at her. "And who are you to go against it?"

"Name's Kaia. Of Minas Tirith. The city I ditched long ago because of your moronic father." I couldn't help but smile at that. If there was one thing Kaia remembered in great detail about Lord of the Rings, it was how much of an idiot Denethor was. That being said, I couldn't help but internally wince at her bluntness.

At the insult, Boromir's eyes flared. "Well! It is a pleasure to meet you, Kaia. I am Boromir. The _son_ of this 'moron.'"

"I know damn well who you are," Kaia growled. "I still say your dad sucks cow nipples."

My eyes widened, and it took all I had not to burst out laughing. Instead, I stood up, grabbed her arm, and yanked her back to her seat before Boromir lunged at her. He was already staring at her with a look that would melt steel. "What ever happened to 'think before you speak?'" I hissed. Kaia just rolled her eyes in response.

Boromir returned to his seat when Elrond spoke again. "We are not here to discuss political opinions," he said with a sharp glare at Kaia. "We must decide the fate of the Ring.

"Why would we pass up an opportunity such as this?" Boromir spoke up again. "We could use this against Sauron and claim the victory for our own!"

Now it was Aragorn who argued with him. "You cannot wield it! None of us can!" Boromir's angry gaze now met his. "The One Ring answers to Sauron alone. It has no other master!"

"And what...would a Ranger know of this matter?" Boromir said.

Now it was my turn to get involved, whether I was stealing Legolas' line or not. I stood up. "Shut up, would you? He's Aragorn, son of Arathorn, for God's sake! He's supposed to be your king!"

At my outburst, all eyes turned to the ranger in the corner, including Kaia's. Aragorn, however, looked at me, a questioning look in his eyes. It was then that I realized I'd just said something that I wasn't supposed to know out loud. Crap.

Boromir looked at him, surprised. "Aragorn?" he questioned. "This...is Isildur's heir?"

"And heir to the throne of Gondor," Legolas chipped in from across the circle, also rising.

Aragorn raised a hand, embarrassed from all the sudden attention. "Sit down, both of you." Reluctantly, I did so, as did the elf.

Boromir shot hateful glares at all of us before he returned to his seat, though. "Gondor has no king. Gondor needs no king."

"Gondor apparently has no brains, either," Kaia said quietly, though it did not go unnoticed by the Steward's son.

After another moment of awkward silence, Gandalf piped up. "Aragorn is right. We cannot use it."

"You have only one choice," Elrond stated. "The Ring must be destroyed."

At this, several people tensed at shot him confused looks, Kaia one of them. I frowned. Did she think there was another way out of this?

"Then what are we waiting for?" Gimli said, getting up and swinging his axe into the air with a battle cry.  
"DON'T!" I shouted, but it was too late. He brought it down, there was a blinding flash of light, and a blast of pain pounded in my head like someone had just punched me in the face. When the smoke cleared, Gimli was on the ground, doing a perfect imitation of the O_o emoticon as his fellow dwarves came to help him up. His axe was in pieces across the ground.

I could see Frodo across the circle, also affected. Gandalf placed a comforting hand on his arm. "The Ring cannot be destroyed, Gimli, son of Glóin, by any craft that we here possess," Elrond said with almost an amused smirk on his face at the dwarf's complete failure. Getting serious again, he looked around the circle. "The Ring was made in the fires of Mount Doom. Only there can it be unmade. It must be taken deep into Mordor and cast back into the fiery chasm from whence it came!" There was another pause. "One of you...must do this."

I looked over at Kaia, and she was looking directly back at Boromir. I quickly caught on, and smiled as the three of us quietly said the infamous line as one. "One does not simply walk into Mordor."

Kaia and I snickered under our breath while Boromir continued ranting. "Its Black Gates are guarded by more than just Orcs. There is evil there that does not sleep. The Great Eye...is ever watchful. It is a barren wasteland, riddled with fire, ash, and dust. The-"

"We get it," Kaia interrupted. "It's scary. So! Who's gonna take the Ring?"

Boromir looked at her in disgust. "Were you raised by barbarians? You have the most horrid sense of manners I've ever seen."

"Boromir!" Aragorn scolded.

Kaia smiled. "Good thing those aren't required to stay alive."

"She's right, though," I cut in. "The Ring has to get there somehow. If we can't walk into Mordor, then what will we do? Dance into it?"

"It is a ridiculous idea!" Boromir retorted. "Even with an army of ten thousand, it would be impossible, let alone for one person!"

"Have you heard nothing anyone has just said?" Legolas cried, standing up. "The Ring must be destroyed!"

"And I suppose you think you're the one to do it!" Gimli spat.

"And if we fail, what then?" Boromir scowled. "What happens when Sauron takes back what it his?"

"Stop being so pessimistic, Boromir!" Kaia shouted.

"I will be dead before I see the Ring in the hands of an elf!"

After that, all hell broke loose. People were shouting, tables were flipped, and the entire place was just absolute chaos. Of course, Boromir came over to Kaia and I and started screaming at us.

"You women need to learn your place! If you cannot control your tongue, then you do not deserve to be here!"

"Oh, shut the fuck up!" Kaia said. "What else do you expect me to do when I'm around a complete goddamn idiot?"

"Have at least a bit of class, would you? You would be doing us all a favor!" The Gondorian heir sneered.

Kaia scoffed. "Says the pigheaded, obstinate, sexist jerk over here!"

"HEY!" I shouted. "Both of you stop it! This is getting us nowhere!" I tried to break them apart, but to no use. Eventually I just plopped back down into my chair and looked over at Aragorn wearily. "If this keeps up, Sauron'll have the Ring by tomorrow evening." The ranger nodded in agreement.

After about five minutes of completely pointless yelling and arguing, Frodo finally stood up and said his line. "I will take it!"

Sadly, no one heard him. I patted Frodo on the back. "I got this." I turned to the crowd and took a deep breath. "HEY! SHUT UP!" Everyone naturally stopped shouting and turned to me. I smiled back and pointed to Frodo. "He's got something to say."

"I will take the Ring to Mordor," he said after a thankful nod to me. "...Though...I do not know the way." I moved back so that I was standing next to Kaia, who poked me in the side as Gandalf announced that he'd go with him. "Is it time?"

"Not yet," I whispered. "Wait for my signal."

Then Aragorn stood up and made his way over to the hobbit, getting down on one knee. "If my my life of death I can protect you, I will." He nodded to Frodo. "You have my sword."

"And you have my bow!" Legolas said, also walking towards him.

"And my axe!" I smiled to myself as Gimli sauntered up and took his place next to Legolas. Neither of them looked very amused.

Then came Boromir, walking up proudly. "You carry the fate of us all, little one. If this is indeed the will of the Council," he looked at Elrond, "then Gondor will see it done."

"Now," I whispered to Kaia. Side by side we stepped forward, approaching the group. "We will also go, to represent the women of Middle-Earth, and to protect him." Just as Boromir opened his mouth to retort, I looked at him firmly. "No matter what the odds."

Legolas also caught my eye. _"No," _he mouthed. I ignored him and looked at Kaia, who had turned to Elrond. "Come on. They're gonna need all the help they can get."

Elrond looked doubtful for a moment, but after some though, nodded. "I have seen what both of you are capable of. You may go."

I smiled and stood next to Boromir on purpose, who had an 'Oh-God-Why' look on his face. Kaia also moved to stand next to me. "Get used to progesterone, dude," Kaia whispered to him. I laughed quietly.

Suddenly, there was movement and a shout from the bushes behind us. Next thing I knew, Sam has slipped between us and firmly planted his feet next to his master. "Mr. Frodo's not goin' anywhere without me!"

Elrond smiled a bit, a twinkle in his eyes. "No indeed! It is hardly possible to separate you, even when he is summoned to a _secret _council and you are not."

"Oy! We're coming, too!" Elrond then whirled around and showed off his Eyebrows of Doom as Merry and Pippin blew past him, also standing aside Frodo. "You'd have to send us home tied up in a sack to stop us!"

"Anyway!" Pippin piped up. "You need people of intelligence on this sort of mission...quest...thing!" I laughed as the curly-haired boy said one of my favorite lines.

"Well that rules you out, Pippin," Merry mumbled.

Elrond seemed to like the thought of it. "Eleven companions...so be it! You shall be the Fellowship of the Ring!" I grinned.

"Great!" Pippin said, beaming. "Where are we going?"

Everyone looked at him, and I smiled at Kaia as she laughed, too. "This is gonna be a long journey."

**A/N: And there's the Council of Elrond! :D Yay! I realize that not every line is exactly the same as it is in the movie, but I'm doing that on purpose. After all, it wouldn't be very interesting if Erin and Kaia didn't shake it up a bit, right? ;) Well...it's 2:30 AM. I'm off to bed. XD Hope you're enjoying it so far! Oh! And Happy 4th of July, everyone! ^^**


	5. Ninja Wizards

Innocence and Instinct: Chapter Five

As Elrond thanked everyone for coming and dismissed us, I started making my way to my room, only to be stopped by a hand grabbing my upper arm. I turned around and saw Legolas staring at me intently. All I had to do was look into his eyes, and I could see that he wanted to talk. Reluctantly, I nodded, and followed him off of the balcony and down a well-kept dirt path until we came to a secluded area in the gardens. "Why did you do that?" he demanded.

I sighed. "Don't make this a bigger deal than it is. Kaia and I wanted to go with you guys, so now we are. End of story." I tried to go around him, but he stopped me.

"_Not _end of story," he hissed. "It will be too dangerous for you, Erin. You could die."

"Legolas, I already know how this story ends! You think I don't already know the dangers ahead?" I looked at him and crossed my arms. "And if I would die, at least I would know that I died protecting Frodo and helping this story along."

He matched my gaze for a moment, and his eyes softened. _"...Ae an__í__rach." _(...If you wish.)

I smiled faintly and nodded to him as thanks. I walked past him and was about to leave, when something suddenly hit me, and I turned around again. "Wait. Yesterday we were screaming at each other and I punched you in the face. Why are you being so nice all of a sudden?"

Legolas exhaled. "Well, if we are to be companions on this new journey, I believe it would benefit everyone if we...stopped acting so childish." He looked down at his feet briefly, then caught my eye again. "I am sorry for what I said. If you truly were trying to protect my realm, then it was for the best."

Surprised by his noble actions, I raised an eyebrow and smiled a bit. "Then I'm sorry for punching you...again." I noticed that it was slightly bruised where I'd hit him, but other than that it seemed fine. "So..." I took a step towards him and extended a hand. "We're cool?"

He nodded and shook it. "I suppose so," he said with a knowing grin. I laughed and pulled him into a hug.

oOo

Kaia's POV

_One month later..._

The thing that woke me up that day was, like most days in Rivendell, the sun beating down on the back of my head through the windows. It wasn't hot or anything, it just felt uncomfortably warm to me. I cracked my eyelids open and still saw blackness from being facedown in my pillow. "Oh, God..." I groaned and rolled over in my bed, brushing my black curly mess of hair out of my eyes and staring up at the ceiling. Why did it feel like something important was happening today?

After thirty seconds, it hit me. "Shit!" I cried as I jumped out of bed and ran to the chair that had my traveling outfit draped across it. Today was the day that the Fellowship was supposed to leave. Gandalf had specifically told me last night to be ready by noon that day to leave, and knowing me, it was probably already eleven thirty. In any event, I grabbed my stuff, ran into the bathroom, and relished taking the last bath I'd get for a long time. Once I was cleaned myself up until I sparkled, I pulled my hair up into a bun on the back of my head to get it off of my neck, not wasting time in trying to dry it.

The clothes I had picked out started with long black leggings and a grey undershirt that had tight, long sleeves and hung down to my thighs. Overtop of that I pulled on a black vest-type thing that was a bit shorter than my gray shirt, but had a large slit in the front that stopped at my navel. It had no sleeves at all, and another small slit on each side of it at my hips, which were held shut by an x of white string. Next I pulled on black fingerless gloves that covered my entire forearm, along with short gray boots that stopped just above my ankles. A white belt was loosely strapped around my hips to hold my two short swords, and I also wore another gray belt with straps that formed an x across my chest to hold another longer fighting sword on my back. A white shoulder guard covered each of my shoulders, and a short necklace with a dark blue gem that Elrond had given me as a gift hung around my neck.

With one last look at myself in the mirror, I grabbed my effects, strapped them to their correct places on my body, and ran out the door. I made it down to the dining room just in time to see the servants cleaning up the large table. _Shit, did I miss breakfast? _I ran up to the table and managed to grab a loaf of warm bread and a bright red apple before the elves cleared it away. Not waiting any longer, I ran outside, frantically looking around for anyone who could tell me where my group was. I felt like a lost little kid.

"Kaia!" I turned, relieved to see my best friend standing not too far away from me. I ran up to her quickly.

"Oh, Erin! Thank God you're still here! I thought I'd overslept!"

"You did," she laughed. Erin was also dressed and ready to go. She wore light brown leggings and a light grey undershirt with long sleeves and a neckline that was slightly off-shoulder. Her main shirt was a deep red-violet color that hung all the way to the middle of her thighs. It also had slits in the side, but hers were much bigger and they weren't tied back by any string. The bottom of her shirt had a light grey trim, and a belt of the same color tightly hugged her waist, the front piece of it dangling down to the bottom of her shirt. I saw two knives strapped to it, along with her main elvish broadsword that she liked to fight with. The collar of the shirt was low and also hugged her shoulders, but was bordered with a thick line of fluffy white fur. The sleeves were tight on her arms until the elbow, where they belled out and split down the middle. Two grey buckles held the fabric together on her arms. She also wore brown armguards and tall matching boots, along with her signature ring and a golden bracelet on her right hand. Her brown hair was pulled back into a low hanging ponytail. "Everyone's already eaten, and Aragorn just told me that Gandalf wants us to leave within the hour." She pointed to my new friend that stood behind her.

I smiled at Aragorn. "Sounds good. So...we just do whatever until then?"

"Yes, you could," he said. "I have a few things that I would like to do before we leave, so if you would excuse me..." We nodded, and he walked off, leaving us girls on our own.

"So..." Erin said, rocking back and forth on her heels. "What should we do?"

"Eat," I said as I took a bite of the still warm bread in my hand. "I'm starving."

Erin laughed. "Get used to it, Kaia. This is the last chance you're gonna have for a decent meal in a long time."

My eyes widened mid-chew. "Seriously? Then I'm gonna take advantage of that!" Not waiting for a response, I turned and sprinted back up the hill to the kitchen, ready to beg anyone in sight for as much food as my stomach could handle.

oOo

Erin's POV

I stood next to Kaia, hovering just inside the stone archway that divided the safe haven of Rivendell from the rest of the outside world. Anxiety was buzzing inside of me, but I didn't mind it. It was almost...euphoric, in a sense. I was excited beyond any doubt that I was getting the chance to be in my favorite story of all time. I watched as the rest of the members of the Fellowship gradually came down and stood with us, Frodo being the last one to arrive. He looked really worried, so I gave him a reassuring smile. He smiled back, then turned around to face Elrond as the elf lord began our goodbye speech.

"The Ringbearer is setting out on the Quest of Mount Doom. On you who travel with him, no oath nor bond is laid to go further than you will." I glanced at the others, who all has stone faces. None of us really wanted to leave Rivendell behind. Heck, even I was sad about it. But it had to be done. "Farewell...hold to your purpose...and may the blessings of Elves, Men, and all Free Folk go with you," he finished quietly. His eyes met mine and Kaia's briefly, and we both gave him subtle nods of reassurance.

It was silent for awhile as Elrond's words sank in. Gandalf was the one who broke it. "The Fellowship awaits the Ringbearer."

Frodo cast one last look at Rivendell's beauty, then turned, looked at each of us, and went under the archway, first in line. We all fell into step behind him, and I ended up walking between Legolas and Sam, who was dragging Bill along with him. I smiled to myself as I barely heard Frodo whisper "Mordor, Gandalf...is it left or right?"

"Left."

Our line didn't really stay that way for long, though. We all walked in silence for awhile after we left Rivendell, but after that we started casually talking amongst one another. Legolas and I stuck close to each other, talking and laughing like we used to.

"So are you telling me that you don't think I couldn't beat you in a sword fight?" I asked incredulously.

"I never said that."

"You implied it, Blondie!" I said, laughing as he rolled his eyes. He absolutely hated my nickname for him.

Legolas kept walking. "I am sure that you could normally hold your own quite well."

"And you're not normal, is that it?"

"Well I _am _captain of the archery division back home," he teased.

Now it was my turn to roll my eyes. "Too bad I was talking about swords, smart one. And I'll probably be captain of something too one day. Just you wait."

"Oh really? Captain of what?"

I stopped walking and posed dramatically, fists on my hips, looking up to the sky. "...Captain of the Ninja Wizards."

Legolas burst out laughing. "You are absolutely insane. Why am I friends with you?"

"Because I'm Captain of the Ninja Wizards. My awesomeness is contagious." We both laughed. "Maybe you'll be as awesome as me one day too, if we hang out enough."

"Maybe." He stopped looking at me like he had been and started cloud-gazing like he did pretty often.

"I'm gonna go find Kaia." I doubled back and worked my way to the back of the line, where Kaia and Aragorn were walking together. They were quite a pair, those two. Where one went, the other usually followed. "Hey guys!"

Both of them looked up from whatever they'd been talking about. Kaia smiled. "Oh no...it's back! Run!"

I laughed and joined them anyway. "Oh, shut up. You know you love me."

"I do. So what were you and Blondie talking about up there? You were laughing loud enough."

I smiled. "Didn't you hear? I've been promoted to Captain of the Ninja Wizards now."

"What the hell?" Kaia laughed. "Does he even know what those are?"

"Probably not," I grinned. "Do you know what they are, Aragorn?"

He chuckled and shook his head. "I am afraid I do not, Erin."

"They're pretty awesome. Think of Gandalf, okay? Now think of him twenty percent cooler than he already is. Now think of him dressed in all black, able to fight with magic and also roundhouse kick someone in the face at the same time. That's a ninja wizard. But cooler."

"I'm sorry, but I could not follow you there."

I facepalmed. "Aragorn! You gotta keep up here!"

"There is something I wanted to ask you about, though."

I looked up at the ranger. "Fire away."

"At the council some time ago, you knew that I was the son of Arathorn." He looked at me oddly. "How?"

Crap. I'd forgotten about that. "Oh! Right, well...Legolas told me." I could've smacked myself. _Is that really the best you could've come up with, Erin? Seriously?_

I guess it didn't matter, because he seemed to take it as a valid answer. "Did he? I knew you were close, but not that close."

"Oh yeah. He talks about you all the time." Two seconds later, I realized how that could be misinterpreted from Aragorn's weirded out look. "Wait. Forget I ever said that. He talks about you in a friendly way."

"You sure about that, Erin?" Kaia said, looking at me with a face that said 'if you know what I mean...*wink wink*'

I laughed. "Yeah, positive."

I tried to get around and connect with as many of the members of the Fellowship as possible. Merry and Pippin were always fun to talk to, Sam was adorable, and even Frodo would open up and chat with me once and awhile. Gandalf, though sometimes cranky, was good to go to for advice, and even Boromir and I talked a bit. Apparently he wasn't really ticked off at me that much. It was more Kaia after she insulted his father that he hated.

I tried to reason with him for so long. "Will you at least go talk to her?"

The Gondorian redhead snorted. "If I did, she'd probably kick me to the ground."

"Please?"

"No, Erin."

"Pleeeeeeeeease?"

"I said no."

I frowned. "You're no fun."

"Forgive me," he said sarcastically. I just shook my head and moved on before things got out of hand again.

**A/N: Whew! A lot happened in this chapter, no? Erin and Legolas are friends again, everyone's left to officially begin the quest, and Erin is now the Captain of the Ninja Wizards! (Bonus internet points of anyone knows where that's from. If not, Google Image search "lord of the rings ninja wizards" and click the first image there. Prepare to lol. XD) In the next chapter...**

**~Legolas' hair will probably be made fun of again!**

**~Crebain will attack the camp!**

**~The Fellowship may or may not reach Caradhras!**

**~One of the girls will completely fail at hide-and-seek!**

**Don't forget to review! :D I love them and read them all, even if I don't respond all the time. :3**


	6. Spy Birds

Innocence & Instinct: Chapter Six

Erin's POV

"Pippin, you know it isn't possible for pigs to fly!"

"Of course I know that, Merry! I'm saying, what if it _were _possible?"

"But it isn't!"

"Not now, yes! But what if it somehow were?"

"It never will be! Pigs can't fly!"

"You don't know that!"

"Have you ever seen one?"

"Well, no..."

"HA! See? I told you so!"

I laughed as the two hobbits went back and forth with each other. They'd been arguing about this for quite awhile, and it was plenty enough entertainment for me. "Have you ever seen a real Orc, Merry?"

The blonde looked up at me. "No."

"Then how do you know those exist?"

"Well, that's not...er, you can't say that..."

Pippin smirked. "See? It is possible. It has to be!"

"No it doesn't!"

I laughed again and shook my head. "You two are _both _impossible."

"What? But we're standing right here in front of you!" Pippin exclaimed, now utterly confused.

At that moment, Gandalf interrupted our fun. "Erin!"

My head snapped up, and I quickly jogged to the front of the line. "Yeah? What's up?" Legolas was also walking alongside of the Istari.

Gandalf looked over at me. "I want you and Legolas to run ahead to that mass of rocks." He pointed ahead, and I looked out to see a big, rocky area that I'd bet good money was the area where we'd later be attacked by Saruman's spy-birds. It wasn't that far, but still a decent distance away. "Go over there and have a look around. If there are no enemies nearby and it is decent territory, we'll make that our camp for awhile."

Legolas and I nodded, and I looked over to my elvish friend with a mischievous grin. "Race ya!" I broke into a sprint, feet flying as I took off across the open area. I heard Legolas' shout from behind me, and glanced over my shoulder, laughing as I watched him try and catch up. Sadly, I'm known for being one of the worst runners in history, so Legolas easily passed me within thirty seconds. I stuck my tongue out at him as he ran past me, also laughing. He got there a lot faster than me, and by the time I reached the rocks he was casually sitting on top of a big boulder, leaning back on his hands and staring up at the sky.

I plodded up to him, panting. "If it wasn't...for you...elves...and your friking...stamina...I would've...totally beaten you."

He just laughed and slid off of the rock. "But you hate running."

"Yeah...I know." I smiled. The two of us picked our way around the area for awhile, scouting as Gandalf had asked us to. It was a pretty cool place, actually. Sort of like a mini-jungle gym. I probably spent more time messing around and climbing on the rocks than actually scouting.

I jumped up on top of another rock and spread my arms wide. Looking down at my elvish friend who was about six feet below me, I grinned. "Hey Legolas, look! I'm queen of the world!" I spun around, being careful not to fall.

He laughed. "And what is your first command, Your Highness?" he playfully bowed.

I put my hands on my hips again and pursed my lips, trying to look stern. In a stupid, deeper voice, I said "It is quite a difficult task to fulfill...I will need someone who is strong..." Legolas raised an eyebrow. "...Agile...and...not blonde."

He rolled his eyes. "I suppose you will be on your own then, Queen Erin."

I glanced down at him. "Ehhh...you'll do."

Smiling, he called up "Then what is your request?"

I beamed and tensed my muscles. "Catch me!"

"What? Erin, I do not think that is the best-"

"WOOOO!" I spread my arms and fell forward, feeling the air whip past my face for a moment as I fell to the ground. Thankfully, Blondie had excellent reflexes, because he caught me easily. The only bad part was that I caught him a bit too off-guard, so his legs buckled when I crashed into him and we fell, sending us both rolling down a small slant.

After I came to a stop, I sat up dizzily, laughing. Next thing I knew, he was crouched down by my side, with a scrape on his cheek. "Erin! Are you alright?"

I didn't say anything for a moment, just continued laughing. "...That was fun! Let's do it again!"

Legolas chuckled as he grabbed my arm and pulled me to my feet. "I think that is enough for today."

I brushed myself off. "We'll be alright. A couple brushburns and scrapes. Meh." I casually walked off, ignoring the slight sting I felt on my shoulder and knees. I spotted another good climbing spot, this one higher up than the rest, and took off towards it. "Oh, this one looks good!" Within a minute, I had pulled myself up to the top of a thinner rock, but it was smooth and shaped in such a way that it was perfect for sitting on. I let my legs dangle and relaxed, my eyes widening in awe. "Legolas, come up here! You gotta see this view!"

It was breathtaking. I saw miles upon miles of rolling hills, dotted with dark blobs that were bushes and other rocks. Off in the far distance, I saw a small trail of shapes moving steadily closer to us that was our Fellowship. A bright, happy sun shone down on it all, light piercing through the partly cloudy sky.

Below me, Legolas shook his head. "How am I supposed to fit up there? It is not big enough for two people!"

"Oh, come on!" I said. "I'll make room! Just come up!"

He hesitated for a moment, then sighed in defeat. "All right." I watched as he nimbly scaled the rocks as I had done, and when his arm appeared next to my feet, I moved over and grabbed it, pulling him up until he sat next to me. "Erin, this is ridiculous! You are hardly even sitting on the rock!"

He was right. I was fine, but most of me was now hanging off of said rock, and we were squished together so that we were literally shoulder to shoulder. I didn't care, though. "Hey, I'm perfectly fine. Blame the Valar for making this particular rock so small." He laughed. "But seriously...isn't it pretty?"

I glanced over at him as his blue eyes took in everything. "Yes...it is an incredible view."

I smiled and looked back out over everything again. "See, this is why I love being off the ground. It's like...a different perspective, you know? You can just relax and enjoy the view...and see things like you've never seen them before." It was silent for a moment, and then I looked back at my friend, confusion suddenly growing on my face. Legolas was staring at me, brow furrowed, like he'd just noticed something. _Frick. Do I have something on my face? _"Legolas? What's wrong?"

He blinked and shook his head. "Nothing. I just..." He looked away and trailed off, now staring blankly at the ground. There was a long, awkward silence, until he spoke again, but his tone had changed. "We should go. Gandalf will be waiting for a report back." He quickly slid off of the rock and made his way down, then stood at the base of the structure, waiting for me.

I frowned, then descended from the top of the rock as well. "Okay."

"Come." With that, he took off running again, matching my speed. For whatever reason, neither of us spoke or looked at each other. We just ran.

When we reached the others again, I was absolutely pooped. I ran up to Kaia, stopping and putting my hands on my knees as I caught my breath. Legolas told Gandalf what the terrain was like, and he agreed to make that our next campsite. "Hey!" my friend said. "How was it?"

I looked up at her tiredly. "Never...again."

oOo

Kaia's POV

My muscles ached from being curled up in this cramped position. I was literally smashed between three rocks, with only a few beams of sunlight allowing me to see. _This is taking so damn long..._

Suddenly, I felt a sharp poke in the back. "Found you!"

"DAMN IT!" I cried. I uncurled myself from my hiding spot and stepped out to see Pippin with a victorious grin on his face. "How the hell are you so good at this?"

Then I noticed Erin standing nearby, laughing. "Actually, you're the one who's terrible at this. Almost your entire back was exposed, Kaia."

I groaned. "Hide and Seek is not my thing."

"Obviously. I've won six times in a row now!" Pippin laughed.

I playfully smacked him on the head. "Oh, shut it." I stretched my back and looked around the camp. "What about Merry? Did you find him yet?"

The little ginger shook his head, curls bouncing everywhere. "Not yet. But I think I know where he's hiding." He leaned closer and whispered "Over there!" I followed his pointed finger to see a patch of the area where there wasn't much rock, just a lot of shrubbery.

I grinned like a madwoman. "Well, what are you waiting for? Go get him!"

Pippin smiled back, then ran over to where he thought his friend was hiding. Erin and I watched as he reached in and almost literally yanked Merry out by the jacket. The poor blonde hobbit came up with a ton of twigs and leaves in his hair and stuck to his clothes. I laughed. "Oh God..."

Erin looked over at me and also smiled. "They're great, aren't they?"

"Lord, yes! They remind me of us when we were in like...sixth grade."

My friend smirked and looked over at me. "Cheese." We both burst into fits of laughter, earning an odd look from Gimli as he passed us.

"Oh my God...I remember that!" I said.

"How could you forget it?" Erin said. "You spewed water all over yourself!"

"Dude, you said it out of nowhere with the most serious expression on your face! How could I not laugh at that?"

"Kaia! I found him!" I looked up again to see Pippin running over to me with Merry in tow. I laughed and helped him brush all the dirt off of his clothes. "God Merry, you totally destroyed your jacket!"

He shrugged. "It was worth it. I had the best spot ever."

"Did not!" Pippin cried. "I did, the first time we played!"

"Mine was better, Pip."

"Was not!"

"Was too!"

I rolled my eyes, smiling as I walked away from the two to leave their arguing to themselves. I made my way up to where Gandalf and Gimli were talking, the former sitting on a large rock and thoughtfully smoking his pipe.

"...we're taking the long way 'round," Gimli was saying. "Gandalf!" The old wizard looked up from his ponderings to the stout, bearded man. "We could pass through the Mines of Moria! My cousin Balin would give us a royal welcome."

"Royal welcome?" I asked. "I like the sound of that! Let's do it!"

But Gandalf just shook his head. "No, Gimli. I would not take the road through Moria unless I had no other choice."

I frowned. "What's so bad about Moria?"

Gandalf was about to answer me, when suddenly Boromir popped up out of nowhere. "It would be faster to go through the Gap of Rohan."

"Would it be safer?" I challenged. This guy...damn, he really got under my skin.

"Well, of course!" Boromir scoffed. "You've got all of Rohan to protect you. And once we reach Gondor, then we'll have-"

"Except we're not trying to go to Gondor," I deadpanned. "We're trying to go to Mordor. Read a map."

Boromir just scowled at me and walked away. I glared at his back until he was out of sight.

"Why do you treat him that way?"

I looked up to see Legolas standing atop a rock next to me, eyeing me curiously. "Because he was being a dick."

Legolas sighed. Apparently he got what that meant. "Would it not be easier to apologize?"

I rolled my eyes and smiled. "Says the guy who fights with Erin all the time." I expected a witty comeback out of him, but didn't get one. When I looked back up at the elf, he wasn't even standing there anymore. He had moved away a few rocks and was now perched atop a different one, staring at something in the clouds. I glanced over at Gandalf. He was looking at it too, as was Erin, though she had a knowing look in her eyes.

I looked back at the dark blur in the sky and said what was on everybody's minds. "What is that?"

"Nothing, it's just a wisp of cloud!" Gimli said.

"No it's not," Erin warned.

"It's moving fast..." Boromir said quietly behind me. "..Against the wind."

I twisted around. "When did you get here?"

Suddenly, Legolas figured it out. "Crebain from Dunland!"

"HIDE!" Aragorn shouted.

"What?" I jumped up, looking around wildly as everyone rushed around, trying to clear all of our stuff out of the way. "What the hell is a Crebain? What-"

Someone grabbed my arm and started dragging me towards some bushes. I spun around. Aragorn. He looked down at me, then gently pushed me towards the bushes. "Stay low and stay quiet."

I was totally confused, but obeyed anyway. I scrunched down underneath the shrubs, and almost jumped ten feet in the air when I heard a voice from only a few feet away. "Erin! Get down!" I glanced over to see Legolas next to me, almost perfectly camouflaged in the bushes.

I then looked out to where Erin was standing in the middle of the open area, grabbing someone's sword that had been left out. "I'm trying, genius!"

"Now!" Legolas said.

She spun around and shot a small glare at him. "What does it look like I'm doing?" Erin quickly ran off to some rocks, and just as she squeezed herself into a hiding place, my ears were raked with the loud, rough sound of a bajillion crow things screeching and cawing as they flew over our camp. _Oh, so that's Crebain. Why the fuck are we hiding from birds? _They were all jet-black, and actually kind of cool-looking as they flew low and fast over our campsite. I thought of Erin's fear of having a bird shit on her that she'd had for awhile, and would've laughed if I hadn't been so freaked out myself. _God, she's probably flipping tables._

The Crebain only circled once around the campsite, then took off, going back in the direction that they'd come from. I didn't move until Legolas looked over at me. "We can get out now, Kaia." He offered a hand, and I took it as he helped pull me out of the bushes. I ran over to Gandalf, who was crawling out from behind a rock. "What was that?"

"Spies of Saruman," he declared to everyone. "Our passage south is being watched." He paused for a moment, then spoke again. "We must take the pass of Caradhras!"

On cue, everyone turned around, including me, and stared up at what was probably the biggest, snowiest mountain I'd ever seen. My jaw dropped. "We're going over that? It'll take us seven years just to get to the top!"

Erin came up behind me and clapped a hand on my shoulder. "And this is still the easy part."

oOo

Erin's POV

After Gandalf made the announcement of our new path, I sighed and started walking around, collecting my stuff so that we could get going. Gandalf said it wasn't safe to stay here any longer. I already knew I was going to _hate _this part of our journey. Especially since I wasn't dressed to walk through blizzards. _Maybe it would be a good thing to pass out from the cold...then I'd miss most of it. Is it even possible to pass out from the cold?_

"Erin!" A voice startled me out of my thoughts about evil snow and other cold things. I turned around to see Legolas coming up to me, looking worried. "Are you alright?"

I looked at him oddly. "Yeah...it was just birds."

"Are you sure they didn't see you?"

"They probably saw all of us, Legolas. After all, we weren't hidden that well."

"Are you hurt?"

I raised my hands. "Dude, _chill out. _I'm fine. It's just birds. They're not gonna eat me. Since when are you so overprotective?" I grabbed one of Sam's packs that I'd spotted laying nearby and walked past him.

"My apologies," he said sarcastically. "Forgive me for caring for my friend."

I stopped and turned to face him, looking at him dangerously. "You don't-" I stopped, not wanting to start any more drama, and sighed. "Never mind. It's fine." I turned back around and walked away again.

I walked up to Sam and Frodo and handed the chubby hobbit his pack. "Here ya go, Sam."

"Thank you, Miss Erin." He timidly took it from me and neatly placed it with his other things.

I smiled down at him warmly. "You know, you can just call me Erin. I'm not your master or anything."

He smiled back. "All right, then. Thank you, Erin."

I laughed and ruffled his hair a bit before walking away. I was stopped when Kaia intercepted me. "Dude, what was that about?"

I frowned. "What?"

"I heard Legolas freak out a little over there."

I shrugged. "I know as much as you. I really hope this isn't some new thing with him. If it is, we're not gonna get along very well."

Kaia smiled. "He's probably PMSing."

As mean as it was, I couldn't help but laugh. "Oh crap...we're all doomed!" We both laughed at that one.


	7. Here We Learn How Much Erin Hates Snow

**A/N: Hey everyone! :D Out of curiosity, I went back and looked at how many reviews the series has gotten so far, and it's...over 60! That's incredible! I'm seriously so thankful for each and every one of you who has read this story and given me feedback on it. I get all excited when I see a new review pop up in my inbox. *forever alone* XD**

**Anyway, the other thing I wanted to say is that I'm sorry if it seems like I'm doing too many scenes involving Erin and Legolas. I have my reasons, trust me, but I just realized that I haven't really done anything interesting with Kaia yet. ^^; I'm still in the process of giving her some big dramatic story of her own, so bear with me. :) Enjoy this next chapter! **

Innocence & Instinct: Chapter Seven

Kaia's POV

_"Kaia...you cannot hide from me. You cannot resist me. I know you...everything about you. You want me. You need me..." _The voice was hissing in my ear.

I nearly jumped ten feet in the air and whirled around, but I stood in complete blackness. It didn't even look like I was standing on anything. "What? Who is that?"

_"You have misjudged me, Kaia...I could help you..."_

I frowned. "Who the hell are you?"

There was a low, rumbling laugh, and I turned around to see a small dot of light in the distance, slowly growing in size like it was approaching me. _"I am everything you wish me to be...Kaia...you need me..."_

All of a sudden, this..._thing _increased in speed and rushed up to meet me. In a second, all of the blackness that I had been standing on was replaced with fire. Scorching flames were everywhere, but I didn't feel a thing. I stared at the object in front of me. It was the One Ring, but about 3 times its normal size. I stared at it curiously. "What are you doing here?"

_"Kaia..." _I tensed when I realized this creepy, hissing, and demonic voice was coming from the Ring itself as it hovered in midair. _"...You have misjudged me," _it said again, _"just like all the others."_

I scoffed. "How? Everyone knows you're an evil thing that only wants to see people die and become corrupted by you."

_"They lied to you, Kaia," _the Ring whispered. _"I am not evil to all...only to those that I have no use for. You, however...you are different." _It floated a bit closer to me, the light of the flames glinting off its gold. _"...I could help you."_

As soon as the Ring said it, I knew it wasn't true, but curiosity convinced me to continue talking to it. "Right. And how would that work out for you?"

_"Kaia...what is it that you desire most...more than anything else in this world?"_

I hesitated. I knew I probably shouldn't answer it, but...the longer I looked at the thing, the more acceptable the idea seemed. "...I want...I want to be able to protect my friends. I want them to stay safe."

The Ring chuckled lowly. _"That is but a simple wish. I could give you that, if you so desired it."_

Okay, I have to admit, that sounded pretty cool. "Really? Well, I...no! Wait, what am I saying? I'm not even supposed to be talking to you! Get out of here!"

_"You don't mean that..." _it whispered. _"I thought you said you wanted to protect your friends. Do you honestly think that you can do it on your own?" _I shut my eyes and tried to block out the Ring's whispering, but it was useless. _"You have no idea what dangers lie ahead."_

"Erin does," I said quickly. "She'd tell me if something bad was going to happen soon."

_"Are you sure about that?" _the Ring asked.

"Well, duh. She's my best friend. Erin would never keep anything like that from me."

The Ring didn't respond for a moment. _"...We will see, Kaia. We will see." _I was about to retort, but it cut me off. _"Even if she did tell you everything, there is no chance that all of you would survive this journey. You each have your...weaknesses..." _It hissed the last word with cruelty. _"Even you..."_

"Stop it!" I shouted. "Shut up!"

_"You and I both know what your weakness is, Kaia. I do not need to speak it, do I?"_

"No," I said quickly. "No, you don't."

_"I thought so...Kaia, you do not belong in this world. You know this. There are too many monsters and opponents for you to face. My master can conjure up everything from Orcs to demons from hell at his own will. In fact, the only way you could protect them all is if you had...well, no. I do not think you would want that..."_

I don't know why, but at that moment, an insane need for whatever that thing was overtook me. "Need what? What do I need?"

_"...Immortality..."_

"Immortality..." I repeated. The word tasted sweet on my tongue.

_"Think about it," _the Ring said. _"If you were immortal, you could not die...you would be nearly invincible...perhaps even strong enough to defeat Sauron himself!"_

I smirked at the thought of that. "That would be pretty cool..." Then I remembered what I was talking to. "Okay, no! I see what you're doing. You're trying to trick me!"

_"No, Kaia, no!" _it said. _"I am trying to help you...You asked for the ability to keep your companions safe...and I could grant you that." _

Wait, what? "You could make me immortal?"

_"I could." _

In my gut, I felt like I was gonna regret asking this. "...How?"

_"Well, that is simple," _the Ring hissed. _"All you would need to to is wield me."_

I frowned. "But I...I can't take you. That's Frodo's job."

_"Frodo..." _the Ring's tone suddenly changed to more of a harsh sneer. _"That weakling can hardly bear to carry his own packs, let alone me!" _As if recomposing itself, the Ring went back to its softer tone. _"Kaia...you and I both know that the Halfling is not strong enough to carry me. It is too much of a burden. It should have been given to someone stronger...such as yourself..."_

I thought about that. "...So I'd just have to...own you, basically? And I'd be immortal?"

_"Yes," _the Ring said simply.

I frowned. "How do I know you're not lying."

It chuckled. _"Kaia...I am the most powerful ring ever created. Is there anything I can't do?"_

I sighed. "I...I guess not, but..." There was silence for awhile. "Still...I don't trust you. I'll be able to get through everything just fine! Erin will keep me on my toes. She wouldn't let us go into something unaware."

The Ring laughed evilly. _"If you choose to trust the girl, then by all means, go ahead. I must warn you, though..." _Suddenly, I felt my feet growing hot. I looked down, and screamed. They were on fire. Looking back up, I saw the Ring hovering in front of me, slowly shrinking. _"...She will betray you. She will lead to your own demise!" _I cried out in pain as the flames continued to lick my skin, now consuming my legs. The Ring's voice grew stronger and more powerful. _"You cannot win this war on your own, Kaia! You need help! You need immortality! You need...me!..."_

"NO!" I screamed. I shot a hand out, reaching for the Ring as it shrunk, but I just missed it. "NO!" I screamed again, the fire now up to my chest and beginning to burn my fingers. My whole body burned with a white hot pain. I closed my eyes, and suddenly I heard voices loudly whispering something foreign in my head.

_"I tuo i macil...astaldaron mauri!"_

"NO!" I shouted again. The voices...they were painful. It felt like someone was driving a knife into my ears. "NO! COME BACK!" The voices grew steadily louder, and the pain stronger, until I couldn't take it anymore.

_"...Nai corma macilya! A LELYAT T__Ú__RENNA!"_

oOo

"No!" I said, my eyes popping open. I was sweating a bit and breathing heavily. Slowly sitting up, I looked around and saw the rest of the Fellowship, still sound asleep in the blackness of the night. The campfire was out, save for a few faintly glowing coals that still remained. We were still crammed into the half-covered cave that Gandalf had found that evening. Three days ago, we'd started our trek up the side of Caradhras. We hadn't hit any snow yet, so that was at least some luck. It had rained earlier that day, though, so we'd turned in a bit early.

Now that I thought about it, I frowned as I scanned the campsite. Shouldn't someone be on watch? Usually there was at least one person that was supposed to stay up until midnight or so to guard it, but I didn't see anyone.

Still a bit shaken from my crazy dream, I carefully pulled myself out of my makeshift sleeping bag, being careful not to wake Erin and Merry, who slept on either side of me. I picked my way across the floor covered with bodies, almost stepping on Gimli's leg in the process, and crept outside of the cave. The air inside was hot and stuffy because of all the bodies, and it certainly didn't smell the best. I could go for some fresh air.

As soon as I stepped outside, I shivered. The nighttime air was a lot colder than I expected it to be. It was a cloudy night, so I couldn't see any stars, and the moon looked hazy and far away. I sighed, trying not to think about my dream, but it seemed impossible. The words of that damned ring were practically burned into my mind.

I was startled when I heard a familiar voice nearby. "Kaia? Is that you?"

I turned to my left and smiled. "Gandalf! Yeah, it's me. You on watch?"

The old wizard nodded, but looked at me with concern. "You seem troubled, my dear. Is something wrong?"

For a second, I was about to tell him everything that had happened in my dream. In the end, I decided not to. "Just a bad dream. Nothing major." I smiled and walked over to him, sitting down on the ground next to the guy I loved like a grandfather. It was silent for awhile, until Gandalf asked me a question.

"You are worried about the journey ahead, aren't you?"

I looked up at him. He knew me so well. "Yeah, I guess so. I don't regret coming or anything, it's just...it's scary. Not knowing what Sauron might throw at us next."

Gandalf nodded. "It is definitely something to be aware of, but not something to worry about. All we need to do is forge on, and deal with the obstacles in our path when we come to them. After all, there is no use in worrying about something that even I cannot yet see."

I looked up at him, smiling, and gave him a hug. He returned it. "Thanks," I said quietly. "That makes me feel a lot better."

"It is not a problem, Kaia." After that, he stood up. "Well! My shift is now over. I am to go in and wake up Boromir to take watch." He started towards the cave, then stopped and looked back at me. "Unless you would be willing to take his shift, that is."

As much as I hated the guy, I knew I wouldn't be able to get back to sleep after what had happened tonight. "Yeah, I'll stay out here. Let him sleep."

He smiled kindly. "Thank you, my dear. Good night."

"Night." I stared blankly out into space, thinking about what the Ring had said to me. The one thing that stuck out to me the most was its claim that Erin would start hiding things from me. There was no way she'd do that! We were like sisters. We never kept anything from each other. Surely she wouldn't start doing that now, of all times.

And then there was this...offer to think about. The more I thought about it, the more it seemed to make sense. If the Ring truly was a ring of power, then...wouldn't it be easy for me to become invincible if I wore it?

_But it's an __evil__ ring of power, Kaia. _That's what the tiny voice in the back of my mind kept telling me. Another part of me actually wanted to accept what the Ring was telling me, though. I groaned, totally lost. I'd think about this some other time. At the moment, I just wanted to focus on staying close with Erin and staying alive.

oOo

Erin's POV

I shivered and shoved my hands under my armpits in an attempt to keep them warm. Sadly, it wasn't helping at all. We had just gotten into the snowy part of the mountain, and already I was freezing. The sun was shining brightly, but that certainly didn't make things any warmer. The snow was thick and deep, and my fingers were numb from the cold. Surprisingly, my feet weren't wet at all from walking through so much snow. I guess that's what you should expect from elvish boots.

Either way, it was cold. As soon as we had hit the snowy areas, our speed had pretty much been cut in half. We were slowly picking our way through the sea of white, with Gandalf at the head, pushing snow away and carving out a path for us with his staff. The four hobbits were next, along with Bill (who had somehow survived thus far), then Kaia and I, Gimli, Boromir, and Aragorn. Legolas just kinda floated around wherever, because he could easily walk on top of the snow without leaving the smallest dent.

I watched as he passed us by for what must've been the thousandth time that day. "Friking elves," I muttered under my breath.

Kaia nodded beside me and tried breathing on her hands to warm them. "I seriously regret not bringing a cloak with me now. Why didn't we bring those with us?"

"Because we're dumb," I said. "I'm just happy that Arwen was nice enough to give us each a hairbrush as a parting gift. If I didn't have my hairbrush, I'd be ten times more pissed off."

"Says the girl with straight, easy to comb through hair," Kaia replied. "That brush doesn't help my afro at all."

I rolled my eyes. "Hey, it's something." After that, it was quiet for awhile. None of us were really in the mood to talk, except for Pippin. But even he knew it wasn't the time. It was just so gloomy since everyone was so cold. And of course, Kaia and Boromir's constant arguing didn't help.

I was plodding along, staring at the endless mass of white before me. "We should have a snowball fight."

"I would, if I still had fingers," Kaia said. "I'll never take a fire for granted again."

"I'll remember to at least wear mittens next time. Three layers of mittens," I mumbled.

Suddenly, Sam shouted from in front of us. "Frodo!" I looked up just in time to see the little guy rolling down the mountain through the snow. The line stopped moving as Aragorn caught Frodo, lifting him to his feet. The young hobbit brushed the snow off of his jacket, then frantically checked his neck for the chain with the Ring. His eyes widened in horror when he realized it wasn't there.

Everyone watched with bated breath as Boromir reached down and picked it up, dangling it in front of his face. I stared at the Ring for a moment, glinting in the sunlight. It was such a pretty ring...

On my finger, the Ring of Unity pulsated again, and I shuddered, looking away from the hypnotizing object, my eyes moving to look at Boromir as he stared at the thing like he was in a trance. "Boromir..." Aragorn called softly.

"...It is a strange thing that we should suffer such fear and doubt...from so small a thing...such a little thing..." he murmured. His other hand slowly reached up for it, ready to take it for himself.

"Boromir!" Aragorn shouted, more forcefully this time.

That snapped him out of his daze. The redhead blinked and looked up, catching himself in the act.

"Give the Ring to Frodo," the ranger ordered. He was eying Boromir skeptically.

Boromir waited for a moment, like he was confused. Eventually, he stepped forward and extended it to Frodo, who snatched it back instantly. "As you wish. I care not." In a vain attempt to break the tension, he laughed a bit and ruffled the hobbit's hair, then turned around and slung his shield on his back, starting the hike again.

"Let us continue," Gandalf said, but it was clear that he'd gotten a little wierded out by what just happened, too.

I sighed and turned around. "Come on, Kaia." I stopped and stared at Kaia, who stood stock still, staring at Frodo with an odd expression on her face. "Kaia!" I snapped my fingers in front of her eyes, and she blinked, coming back to reality. She looked at me like she'd never seen me before. "You okay?"

After a short pause, she nodded slowly. "Yeah, I'm okay." With that, she quickly started walking up the mountain, and I followed, also confused.

_What in the world just happened?_

oOo

Much later that afternoon, we were making our way across a narrow ledge that I vaguely recognized as the ledge where Saruman was going to get in the way and attack us with snow. Upon noticing this, I sighed and mentally started preparing myself to be even colder than I was now.

We were waltzing around in the middle of a blizzard, to put it mildly. The wind was cold and biting, whipping snow into my face and hair, which had come out of its ponytail some time ago. The string I'd used to tie it back had literally been ripped out by the wind and flown away. A couple of loose hairs were so wet with snow that they had stuck to my face. I wouldn't be surprised id the ends of it were actually frozen.

At this point, we were moving even slower than before. You could hardly see where you were going, since the sky was so thick with snow, and even if you lifted your head, you'd have enough snow to make a snowcone in your face a few seconds later. Gandalf still plowed through the snow at the front of the line, cutting a path for us to go through. Boromir was next, carrying Merry and Pippin, who were wrapped underneath his cloak and clinging desperately to each of his arms. Kaia was behind him, then me, and then Aragorn, who had Frodo and Sam in his arms. Gimli was now pulling Bill along at the rear.

I was plodding forward, head down, lost in thoughts that mostly revolved around how much I hated snow. Since I was so caught up in my silent complaining, I failed to see where I was placing my foot, which ended up in me slipping and falling flat on my face in the cold. It actually stung to have the stuff touch my face, and it was so deep that I couldn't even get up. Someone shouted my name above me, and a second later I felt strong hands grab my shoulders and pull me back to my feet. I looked up and identified my savior as Legolas. "Thanks," I said, steadying myself before stepping forward again.

"Would you like me to carry you?" he offered.

I shook my head. "I'm fine."

"Are you sure? You are not hurt?"

I gritted my teeth. "Legolas. I. Am. _Fine." _I couldn't understand why he was being so overprotective lately. It seemed like every little thing I did required me to be wearing fifteen layers of bubble wrap for him to be okay with it. In my head, a part of me knew that he was probably doing it just to be nice and that I was overreacting, but I had plenty of reasons to be irritable right now.

He got the message and moved on, passing the rest of us until he was a few steps ahead of Gandalf. A second later, I heard him shout "There is a fell voice on the air!"

Now that I listened, I heard it too. Apparently Kaia did as well. "Sounds like a bunch of gibberish to me," she said quietly.

"It's Saruman!" Gandalf cried. As he finished those words, there was a loud crack from above us, and we all looked up in horror to see about a dozen rocks or so plummeting down towards us. We yelled and pressed ourselves against the mountainside to dodge them.

"Here we go," I muttered in exasperation. Then, turning to the skies, I yelled "Oh, come on! Was that really necessary, dude?" There was another loud rumble.

"I think you should take that as a yes," Boromir replied.

"He's trying to bring down the mountain!" Aragorn shouted over the wind and sounds of falling mountain. "Gandalf! We must turn back!"  
"No!" The wizard was determined. He lifted himself up so that he was standing on top of the snow (which at this point was almost up to my chest), and started yelling also, but not at Saruman. _"Losto, Caradhras! Sedho, hodo! Nuitho i 'ruith!" _(Sleep, Caradhras! Be still, lie still! Hold your wrath!)

"What's he saying?" Kaia asked me. For all the time she'd spent in Rivendell, she'd never really picked up on the elvish language.

"He's telling the mountain to not kill us."

"Oh."

A split second later, there was a flash of lightning striking the rock above us in the sky, and once again, we all looked up to see rocks raining down on us again, but this time there was a **lot **more. It was like...a waterfall, but frozen. Everyone screamed, including Kaia and I, as we slammed ourselves against the mountain once again in an effort to protect ourselves, but it failed. I hit the wall pretty hard, but I didn't even have time to think about that slight pain before I was absolutely nailed with tons and tons of snow and rocks drumming on my back and burying me within seconds. My eyes were squeezed shut, and I didn't dare open them. I could feel my face smashed up against the rock of the mountain, one arm trying to cover my head, the other outstretched. My lungs burned from a sudden lack of oxygen.

I stood there for what felt like forever. I'll admit, it was absolutely terrifying. I had basically just been buried alive, whether I knew that I would be rescued or not. Thankfully, it didn't really last that long, for a moment later I felt the weight above my right shoulder lessen, and a moment later I was pulled up out of the snow. I came up coughing and spitting ice out of my mouth.

I expected Legolas to be the one that pulled me up, but it was Aragorn. "Are you alright, Erin?"

I coughed again, sucking sweet air into my lungs. "Yeah...yeah, I think I'm good. I know how an ice cube feels now."

Suddenly, he frowned. "You're bleeding."

My eyes widened in panic. "What?"

He gingerly touched my left cheek, and I winced. When he pulled his fingers away, they were red. "It is not too serious. You should be fine. I will get something for you to wipe your face with."

I smiled. "Thanks." As soon as he walked away, I turned to see Kaia also getting her bearings. "You okay, man?"

She nodded. "Yep." Then with a devious smile on her face, she said "Better not let Legolas see your paper cut. He'll take you to an emergency room."

I laughed. "Seriously though, hide me. I don't need him fussing over me any more than he already does."

She nodded, and glanced over her shoulder to see where the elf was at. He was still up at the front next to Gandalf, but I could see him looking over in our general direction every now and again.

Aragorn came back with a piece of clean cloth that was already soaking wet from being in the snow. He gently wiped the blood off of my face, folded it over to a clean side, and handed it to me. "Just keep holding it to your cheek until it stops bleeding," he said. I nodded.

By this time everyone else had been unearthed, and we were debating where to go from here. "We must get off the mountain!" Boromir was shouting. "Make for the Gap of Rohan, and take the west road to my city!"

"The Gap of Rohan takes us too close to Isengard!" Aragorn argued.

Gimli decided to speak up. "We cannot pass over the mountain! Let us go under it! Let us go through the Mines of Moria!"

There was silence for awhile, as I knew there would be. Gandalf seemed to be thinking for a minute, then he spoke. "Let the Ringbearer decide." Frodo didn't look to happy about that idea.

"We cannot stay here! This will be the death of the hobbits!"

"Shut up, Boromir!" Kaia said. "Let him think!"

There was another silence. "Frodo?" Gandalf asked expectantly.

"We will go through the mines," Frodo said in a loud voice. I could still see the uncertainty in his eyes.

I looked back to Gandalf, who also seemed unhappy about this. "...So be it."


	8. A Visit From the Kraken's Cousin

Innocence & Instinct: Chapter Eight

Kaia's POV

Once we backtracked after our horrible mountain climbing fail, we headed down the road to Moria. Gimli seemed pretty damn happy that we were going there, and I actually liked listening to his stories about his relatives that were down there.

"So what's Moria like?" I asked him as we followed the rest of the Fellowship down a rocky, slanting pathway. He and I were at the end of the line, with Legolas just ahead of us. Erin was up some ways ahead, talking with Frodo and Sam.

"Oh, you'd love it, lass!" the short guy exclaimed. "It has been long since I walked in my cousin's halls, but I promise ya it'll still be just as magnificent. Once we're done there, you'll know the true meaning of celebration. It's been said that the walls sparkle in the light of the warm, blazing torches mounted on the walls...but from what, none can be sure. Some say that it is dwarven magic." I heard Legolas scoff from ahead of us. "Even I do not know the truth."

I nodded. "Sounds awesome! I'm excited to see it." And I was being completely honest. I was excited to see the dwarves, for a number of reasons. One big one was because I'd already seen enough elves to last me a lifetime, and I was interested in seeing a different culture. The other reason was because I knew it would make Legolas feel really awkward being surrounded by short, hairy people, and I wanted to see him squirm just for fun.

A sudden thought popped into my head. "Hey Gimli."

"Yes, lass?"

"Are there dwarf women? And do they have beards, too?"

He smiled. "That is another mystery of my people. It is said that they are too similar to the dwarf men to be recognized!"

"That sucks," I said, laughing. "I'd think that the dwarf women wouldn't have any beards. Yeah...yeah, that's gotta be it. After all, there's no such thing as bearded women, unless you're in a crazy house."

Gimli looked at me strangely. "Begging your pardon?"  
"Sorry," I said. "I'm rambling again. But if you do see any dwarf women...let me know."

He grinned again from under his thick red beard. "I can do that."

oOo

It took us several days to reach our new destination. Nothing too interesting happened during that time, either. It was just lots of walking, random conversations, and...more walking. I was able to sleep peacefully during those nights, which was somewhat of a comfort. Maybe the Ring had decided to stop pestering me about immortality. I still couldn't get what it said out of my mind, though. I doubt I'd ever be able to as long as this journey continued.

At one point, when I was walking with Aragorn again, I noticed that he looked...distant. "Aragorn!"

His gaze snapped up to meet mine. "What is it?"

"Is something wrong? You seem...upset."

He sighed. "It is...difficult to explain."

It didn't take me more than a second to understand what he meant. "It's Arwen, isn't it?"

He nodded. "I fear for her safety," he said quietly. "I do not want her to remain here, amongst all this pain and suffering, but..."

"But you don't want to lose her," I finished, "because you love her."

He managed a small smile. "How is it that you are always able to finish the thoughts that I cannot?"

"Because we're awesome like that," I smiled back. I already knew the whole situation about Aragorn telling Arwen to leave. "Look, you know that she loves you, Aragorn. If I know Arwen...she won't be gotten rid of that easily."

He chuckled a bit. "I suppose you are right."

I gave him a quick hug. "Good. Now stop being so moody, big brother."

His smile grew at the nickname I'd given him. "I will try my best, little sister."

My attention suddenly shifted when Gimli gasped and stopped walking, causing me to bump into him. "Hey, Gimli! There are people behind you, bro!"

But he wasn't paying any attention to me. "The Walls...of Moria!"

I looked ahead, expecting to see some grand, extravagant thing with lights and awesome architecture and stuff, but...the grin dropped from my face. It was just a solid wall of rock, with a stony bank that ran along the side of a dark, gloomy looking lake. There were like...two or three trees nearby, but that was seriously it. Everything seemed shrouded in mist. "Seriously? That's it? There's not even a door!" I kept walking, wondering how in the name of hell we were supposed to get inside.

"Dwarf doors are invisible when closed," Gimli replied, like he was stating an obvious fact. He paused to tap his axe on a part of the rock.

"Yes, Gimli," Gandalf said, also scanning the rock for any kind of sign. "Sometimes even their own masters cannot find them if their secrets are forgotten!"

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Legolas asked sarcastically. I laughed and ran ahead to catch up with Erin, who was trailing behind Gandalf.

"What happens next?" I asked.

Erin just smiled and pointed to Gandalf. "Wait."

There was a splash, and I turned around and looked at Frodo, who was behind us and looking really freaked out about stepping in the lake. "Hey, chill out! It's just water, it won't kill you," I said. Frodo glanced up at me uncertainly, but said nothing.

After a moment, Gandalf stopped at a smoother surface between two trees. And he started rubbing it. I frowned. "What does that do?" I asked. "All of the rocks are gonna be dusty."

He chuckled. "I am not concerned about the cleanliness of the rocks, Kaia. I believe I have found are way in. Now, let's see...ithildin. It mirrors only starlight..." He turned around and looked up at the sky. "...and moonlight."

I followed his gaze, and just like that, the moon appeared from behind the clouds. Looking back at the door, my eyes widened. "Holy shit! It's glowing!" On the face of the mountain, a pattern of glowing, swirling lines appeared, taking the form of two pillars, with the branches of two trees wrapping around them on either side. An arc at the top connected the two pillars, and a bunch of writing in a foreign language that looked like elvish was written there. Right underneath of the arc, there was a peak of seven stars, with a crown set underneath the middle one. Under that, a hammer and anvil was drawn, and between the two trees there was a four-pointed star with rays shining out from it. At the very bottom, there was an elvish letter of some sort.

Gandalf stepped back, smiling. I looked around to see the rest of the Fellowship looking at it with as much awe as I was. Well, except for Gimli. He was looking at it like it was God or Chuck Norris or something. "It reads: The Doors of Durin: Lord of Moria. Speak, friend...and enter!" Gandalf announced.

"What do you suppose that means?" Merry piped up from behind him.

"Oh, it's quite simple! If you are a friend, you speak the password, and the doors will open." With that, Gandalf faced the door and touched the tip of his staff to the star. In a loud voice, he commanded, _"Annon Edhellen, edro hi ammen!" _(Gate of the Elves, open now for me!) We all waited...

…and nothing happened.

Gandalf tried again, now saying something different and raising his arms to the door. _"Fennas Nogothrim, lasto beth ammen!" _**(A/N: Sorry, I couldn't find the translation for this one. :I) **Once again, the doors didn't move. Gandalf dropped his arms, and Legolas looked away and sighed in exasperation.

"...Nothing's happening."

I laughed. "Way to state the obvious, Pippin." I turned and grinned at the hobbit over my shoulder. Gandalf ignored him and tried pushing on the doors. There was another long silence, until Erin broke it.

"Well, this is awkward." After that, she turned and walked away, quickly deciding to climb around on the boulders to our right in her boredom.

I stayed put and watched as Gandalf struggled. "I once knew every spell in all the tongues of Elves, Men, and Orcs."

_Well, wouldn't it make sense to say it in Dwarvish? _I opened my mouth, about to speak up, but Pippin called out again before me.

"What are you going to do, then?"

"Knock your head against these doors, Peregrin Took!" Gandalf lashed out. "And if that does not shatter them, and I am allowed a little piece from foolish questions, I will try to find the opening words."

I closed my mouth and looked down. _Guess I'd better keep my mouth shut._

oOo

Erin's POV

We waited along that godforsaken bank for _hours. _It was so aggravating, especially since I knew what the password was, but couldn't say it and help speed things along. We had to get attacked by the Watcher in the Water so that it would shut the doors and force us to go through Moria, and that bothered me to no end. I spent most of my time climbing around on the rocks and in the trees, but eventually I decided to just sit on one of the rocks to the right of the door and wait for Merry and Pippin to start throwing rocks. I probably looked like a creeper, staring at them like I was, but I was just so bored.

After awhile, I heard footsteps coming my way, but my eyes never moved from the two hobbits as someone came and sat down next to me on my rock. It was Legolas. "Do you know what the password is?" he asked quietly.

I nodded. "Yeah. But I can't say it."

His brow furrowed. "Why not?"

I hesitated, wondering if it was safe to tell him about the attack. "...Something has to happen first."

He understood that I had to keep the information to myself, as much as I wanted to tell him all I knew. "Ah."

There was silence for a moment longer, until I sighed and turned to face him. "Okay, I'm tired of staring at the hobbits. For once, they're actually not being very entertaining." Legolas laughed. "So..how's life?"

He smiled at the random question. "Well, I am sitting by a dark, dank, horrible-smelling lake on an uncomfortable rock with an annoying human next to me. Does that answer your question?"

I smiled at his teasing. "Cute. And I'm sitting next to an elf with hair that isn't naturally blonde and smells funny."

"Oh, please," he laughed. "All of us lack proper hygiene."

"Sadly, this is true," I agreed. "And to think, we have to put up with this for the next several months or so."

"Do not remind me."

I laughed again. "You know, you're pretty funny...for an elf."

He looked at me curiously, with a grin on his face. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Oh, nothing..." I teased him, looking away.

"Erin."

"What?"

"Are you suggesting that elves are not normally funny?"

I gasped. "Stop making horrible accusations! I'd never say such a thing!"

He laughed. "But you just said that-"

"I didn't say a thing. I don't know what you're talking about."

"Erin!"

"Legolas!" Both of us burst out laughing again, and I had to grab his shoulder to keep my balance. That, in turn, caused him to sort of lose his own stability, and Legolas ended up falling off of the rock backwards, sliding down until he was stuck between three of them. He tried to get out, but he couldn't push himself up far enough. The sight of him squirming around down there made me laugh even harder, until tears started welling up at the corners of my eyes.

"Erin!" he cried, still laughing a bit. "Help me!"

"Hang on," I said, looking away and trying to catch my breath. Once I thought I had calmed down enough, I turned back to him, ready to pull him up, but seeing his boots sticking out overtop of the rock he'd fallen off of made me start laughing all over again. "L...Legolas!" I crawled over to him, beaming.

He was laughing just as much as I was. "Get me out!"  
"I'm trying!" I said, gasping for breath between giggles. I grabbed one of his arms, pulling hard. "Wait! What if I fall into the lake?"

"Then I will dive in and save you," he said, grinning. "Now pull!"

I smiled, tried to get my footing set up properly, and then pulled as hard as I could.

"Ah! Stop!"

I let go. "What?"

He looked up and laughed at me, rubbing his shoulder. "If you were trying to dislocate my arm, you were doing well." We laughed again, and I pulled him out properly this time, letting him climb back up to his old perch.

My laughter finally died off, and I sighed, grinning at him. "I can't remember the last time I laughed that hard."

"Neither can I," he said, smiling as well. "I-"

He was cut off by a loud splash that got both of our attention. The smile disappeared from my face as I saw Merry and Pippin standing at the water's edge, tossing rocks out as far as they could for amusement.

I glanced at Legolas, who was also watching them. "Time to go," I whispered. I crawled around him and made my way back down to land, standing in front of the door where Gandalf had finally given up and sat off to the side. Legolas followed me, and I noticed that Kaia was sitting on the ground nearby as well. I kept my eyes on Pippin as he drew his arm back for another shot, but was stopped by Aragorn. "Do not disturb the water," I heard him whisper. My eyes flicked out to the water, where I could see the ripples of the rocks still moving. Time seemed to stand still for a moment as everyone suddenly grew wary of the lake.

I heard Frodo get up behind me, and didn't even need to turn around to know what was going on. "It's a riddle."

Kaia stepped up beside Legolas and I. "What is that?" It was more than a ripple now...it was a wave.

I didn't answer her. "Get ready," I whispered to only her.

"Speak 'friend' and enter," Frodo was saying. "What's the elvish word for friend?"

_"Mellon," _Gandalf, Legolas, and I answered in unison. There was a loud cracking from behind us, and the attention was temporarily drawn away from the water as all eyes turned to see the Doors of Moria swing outwards smoothly, pushed by some unseen force. Gandalf gave a chuckle of amusement, and set a crystal in the top of his staff. One by one, we all filed inside, though I was more than ready for what was to come. As we walked in, I loosened my sword in its sheath, waiting for the cue.

It was silent as we slowly walked inside. You could barely see where you were going, because the only light was the light from the moon that still shone brightly outside. And the smell...oh gosh, don't even get me started. To put it simply...it was obvious that no one was living here anymore. Already I could make out the shapes of dwarf skeletons, and it was unsettling.

Gimli seemed to be the only one who didn't notice it. "Soon, Miss Kaia and Master Elf, you will enjoy the fabled hospitality of the dwarves! Roaring fires...malt beer! Ripe meat off the bone!"

"Uhh, Gimli? Do dwarves like to throw surprise parties or something? Because I'm not seeing any of that."

I assumed he didn't hear her. "This, my friends, is the home of my cousin Balin. And they call it a mine. A _mine!" _He said it like he thought this place was some sort of heaven. _More like hell, _I thought grimly. Gandalf's light glowed brightly from his staff, revealing even more bodies long dead and some still rotting. They were _everywhere. _There was barely even any room to walk freely without stepping on someone.

Boromir said what we were all thinking. "This is no mine...it's a tomb."

I heard the hobbits gasp and unsheathed my sword along with all the other men, slipping off into the shadows and away from my previous position beside Legolas. Slowly and silently, I started working my way towards the entrance, throwing a backwards glance over my shoulder every now and again to look outside. Even now I could see the horrible, slimy thing working its way through the water.

Gimli's distressed cries rang out loudly in the hall, and I could almost see Kaia cringe in horror. "Oh, God!"

"Goblins!" I heard Legolas announce, drawing his bow. I looked backwards again. I was now far behind everyone else, only a few yards away from the door.

"We make for the Gap of Rohan," Boromir ordered. "We should never have come here. Now get out of here, GET OUT!"

"Wait!" I heard Kaia suddenly shout. "Where's Erin?"

As soon as she said it, I completely turned around and bolted out the door, skidding to a stop on the bank and severing the tentacle that would've wrapped itself around Frodo's ankle with a battle cry. I heard an inhumane shriek of pain from the beast, and it took all I had not to shudder as the beast rose out of the water, its massive head dripping in slime. It moved as close as it could to me in the water, but did not strike just yet. I wasn't what it wanted.

It roared in displeasure, to which I just smirked. "Hello, Beastie."

I gripped my sword tightly and tensed, preparing to run, but just as I took my first step forward, I heard someone shout from behind me. "NO!"

The next few seconds were all a blur. I remember leaping forward to attack the thing, then feeling a pair of strong hands on my back, shoving me to the side with incredible force. I stumbled to the side, the momentum of my run sending me farther than I expected. Next thing I knew, there was a rock about the size of my head finding its way between my feet. I tripped, and went plummeting towards the ground, but not before my skull hit a sharp rock with a _bang. _

I remember the sharp pain blossoming at the left side of my head, and the brief warmth that followed. Something sticky dripped into my eyes. I tried to stand up, but I didn't get one step forward before I crashed onto the rocky shore and completely blacked out.


	9. Moria: The Ideal Vacation Spot

**A/N: Ohnoes! Erin is injured! Or...I'm injured! D: Lol, it feels weird saying that. XD Obviously this chapter's going to be a lot more serious/angsty than the others, so be ready for that. ;) Also, I just want to give a quick shout out to InkWielder, who posted a review to the last chapter _super _fast. Not even a half hour after I submitted it, I check my emails, and BAM! "New Review." You, my friend, are awesome. *brofist* Hope everyone enjoys this next chapter! :D **

Innocence & Instinct: Chapter Nine

Kaia's POV

I remember seeing Legolas' eyes widen in fear as he darted towards the entrance to the mine. "NO!" he shouted, startling us all. I took this as a sign of bad things to come, and whipped out my own two blades to fight with.

"Come on!" I shouted, running after him. They all followed me, even the hobbits, but they probably should've stayed inside. As soon as Frodo stepped out, a tentacle lashed out and grabbed him by the waist, sending him up into the air and screaming as he was dangled over the water.

_Wait...tentacle? What the hell?_

I froze as I got outside. "Oh...my...fuck." The thing in front of me was like...it was like...a killer octopus from hell. It had so many goddamn tentacles, I just... I didn't even know where to start. I could hardly even see if the thing had a head, but from what I did catch a glimpse of, it was massive, too. Since I had no idea what to do, I followed everyone else's lead and ran out into the water, knee-deep, slicing off various slimy things that tried to touch me.

"Kaia!" I looked up for a split second to see a tentacle about to crush me, and I screamed as I jumped out of the way, bringing my blade down on it as it crashed to the water's surface. Water sprayed up and almost completely soaked me from head to toe.

I looked back to see Aragorn behind me, and ran over to him. "What the fuck is going on?"  
He opened his mouth to answer me, but suddenly there was a scream. "ARAGORN! KAIA!"

We looked up to see Frodo being dangled above us, screaming at the top of his lungs. "OH MY GOD!" I screamed. I found the tentacle that was holding him, ran over, and sliced through it. Aragorn followed me, and a moment later the hobbit was in his arms, shaking.

Boromir shouted for Legolas, and I looked to shore to see him preparing to shoot...me? I stared at him. "I'M ON YOUR SIDE, DUDE!"

He shook his head and motioned for me to move. I did so, turning around in the process, and instantly regretted it. The beast's head was right behind me, and two massive black eyes bulged out of their sunken in sockets to stare at me. Tentacles sprouted from every single space imaginable on it, and it opened up its mouth to reveal at least two sets of razor sharp teeth that were each bigger than my head. "Holy shit!" I screamed, whipping a knife out of my belt and throwing it, putting out one of its eyes before I turned and ran back to shore.

I stumbled up past Legolas as he fired an arrow into the thing, causing it to bellow in pain. I was just about to head back out, when I saw something laying off to the side out of the corner of my eye. I stopped to look at it fully, and my jaw dropped. "What the hell?" I ran over to Erin, who was lying facedown in the rocks, completely passed out. "What...what the...what?" I gasped as I turned her over.

The left side of her face was absolutely covered in blood, along with her shoulder, the rocks below her, and most of her hair. The cause of this was a gash in the back left corner of her skull that I flinched at when I saw it. "ERIN!" I screamed, shaking her slightly. "ERIN, WAKE UP! GET UP!" She didn't so much as flinch to my yelling. My heart raced, and I completely panicked, looking up as I heard someone shout to get inside the mines. Everyone was running back in, save for Legolas, who fired one last shot. "Shit!" I swore. I grabbed her sword, which was also flung off to the side, and awkwardly slung her over my shoulder, lifting her off of the ground. I got to my feet just after Legolas turned around and ran for cover, shifted her weight, and then followed him, ducking inside the entrance just as the sound of cracking and falling stone broke out. Dust and dirt rained down on me, and I was just barely able to make it out of the mini-avalanche without getting seriously hurt.

I swerved off to the side, on the edge of Gandalf's light, and gently laid Erin down on the ground, still freaking out. _Is she dead? Oh God, don't let her be dead! For fuck's sake, tell me she's alive!_

oOo

Legolas' POV

I halted behind Aragorn, grabbing his shoulders and watching as the Watcher in the Water destroyed the doorway, sending large boulders down to block our way out. The last snatches of moonlight disappeared, and for a moment all that could be heard was the heavy breathing of my companions and myself as we all tried to get our bearings.

Gandalf quickly relit his staff, his expression dark. "We now have but one choice. We must face the long dark...of Moria."

He took a step forward, as did I, but we all stopped in our tracks and turned around at a loud shout from across the room. "NO! ERIN! Wake the hell up!"

My breath caught. _Erin? What happened? Is she hurt? _

"Kaia?" Gandalf called over to her hunched over form at the edge of the shadows. "Is that you?"

"Gandalf, get over here! Erin needs help!"

She certainly did not have to say it twice. Within seconds, every member of the Fellowship was gathered around her, and my heart nearly stopped when I pushed past Aragorn ans saw Erin. She had a deep gash in the side of her head, bleeding heavily, and her face, hair, and clothes were sticky with it. She was incredibly pale, and did not appear to be breathing.

I dropped to my knees beside Kaia, panicking. "What happened? How did this-"  
"YOU!" she screamed suddenly. I jumped and looked at Kaia, who was glaring at me with a burning hate in her eyes. "WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO?"

I blinked and moved backwards, barely dodging her fist as it flew at my face. When I looked back up, Aragorn was holding her back and shouting at her to stop. "I-I do not...what?" _What did I do? What is she talking about? _

"YOU FUCKING DICK! YOU STUPID ASSHOLE! I'M GONNA KILL YOU!"

"Kaia!" Aragorn shouted. "Why are you yelling at Legolas? He did nothing!"

"Yes he fucking did!" She looked from him back to me. "What did you do when you ran outside, huh? Did you push her?"  
I stopped, remembering the battle. "I...I..."

"DID YOU PUSH HER?"

Guilt slammed into me like I had hit a wall. Everything made sense. I shuddered, realizing what had happened. "Yes...I pushed her out of the way..."

"DAMN RIGHT YOU DID!" Kaia yelled. "And you know what you did, didn't you? You pushed her into the damn rock! You have her a concussion, you bastard!" She struggled against Aragorn, trying to break free. "You probably fucking killed her!"

"KAIA!" Everyone fell silent and looked at Gandalf, who was also crouched next to Erin's still form. "That is enough," he said sternly. "We all know that Legolas would never intentionally cause her harm. You know that as well. It was an accident."

"She could be dead!" Kaia said, her voice less strong. I could hear the pain and sorrow she must have felt for Erin as she spoke.

"She is not dead," Gandalf shot back. "She still has a steady pulse. We must stop her wound from bleeding and clean her off. Erin will be fine."

Kaia considered that for a moment, then finally dropped her head. It was deathly quiet for a moment, until she shuddered and let out what sounded like a cross between a sigh and a sob. Aragorn lifted her to her feet and led her away.

I just stared at Erin, not believing what had just happened. _I...she...I hurt her...I could have killed her...Erin...I just..._

"Legolas." The wise Istari's firm voice momentarily snapped me out of my thoughts. "Go see if you can find water anywhere in the mines nearby." I nodded and slowly stood up, walking away quietly as Gandalf gave out further instruction to the others.

I walked through the mines silently, not focusing on anything. _I could have killed her. I could have caused her to die. I could have just murdered one of my closest friends. _It seemed impossible. All of this time, I had been trying so hard to protect her, and now I was the cause of the worst injury she had experienced yet. Her pale face appeared in my mind, and I shuddered, my heart breaking at the image. _I did it...I almost killed her. Were it not for the grace of the Valar, she would be dead right now. Gone. _

The guilt was crushing. I felt like I could barely breathe. _What if she does not survive? What if she loses too much blood? It would be my fault. All my fault. I was careless. I should not have pushed her. Why did I push her? _I already knew the answer to that. _Because I care for her. I did not want her fighting the Watcher on her own. She would not have been able to do it._

Another part of me was skeptical. _No, she would have been fine until the others reached her. I have seen Erin fight before. She does well. Why would she not have been able to hold her ground for a mere moment longer? She would have been able to. Why did I push her away? _

At that moment, I heard the faint sound of dripping water. It was to my left, so I turned down the left passageway. For a moment, I tensed, realizing that I had not been keeping track of where I was going. Then I heard someone's shout from not far away, and I realized that I had not turned anywhere other than here. I continued on steadily towards the sound of water, lost in thought. After some time, I turned another corner and discovered the source of the noise. There was a small, almost not visible stream of water flowing down across the rocky path I was on and dripping off into a seemingly endless chasm below. I crouched down and cupped my hand under it, collecting a bit to see if it looked clean. It was a bit dirty, but it was likely as good as one could get down in these horrible caves.

It hit me then that I had failed to bring something with me to collect the water in. I looked around for anything to gather it in, when my arm bumped against something on my back. _My quiver. _I quickly unhooked the straps and pulled it off of my back. I had most of my arrows left, as I had only used a few in the battle with the Watcher. I carefully gathered my arrows in my hand and pulled every last one out, holding them firmly before lowering my quiver down underneath the dripping water and mindlessly watching the droplets fall down into it as it filled.

It took longer than I wanted. With each passing moment, I worried that I would return too late, and that I would walk up to the sight of Erin lying dead on the ground in front of me. I let out a shaky breath at the thought. _No. That cannot happen. I will not let it happen. I have done enough to hurt her already. _When my quiver was nearly full, I carefully lifted it and stood, making sure I still had my arrows. I started the walk back to the others, when I noticed that my quiver was shaking. I frowned for a moment, then tensed as I realized that it was not the quiver, but my own hands that were trembling. _Ai, Valar. _I quickened my pace, trying to calm myself as I hurried back to where Erin would be. _Please let her still be alive._

oOo

Kaia's POV

This couldn't be happening. This seriously couldn't be happening.

I paced back and forth by Erin's head, clutching the soft rolls of bandages that Aragorn had given me like my life depended on it. _Where the hell is that elf? He should be here by now. _

I was beyond pissed at him. After Aragorn had dragged me away, we walked off to somewhere more private and talked for a bit. Well...he talked. I bawled my eyes out. I had been such a mess. I'd been bawling and sniveling and flipping tables because I didn't know if my friend was going to live. She'd lost a lot of blood already, and Gandalf didn't know how much longer she could last without medical attention. We'd placed one of Sam's blankets underneath her head (bless that little guy for not caring if it got all bloody) and tried to make her a bit more comfortable, should she wake up anytime soon. I doubted she would, though.

I wanted to punch Legolas so badly. So, so fucking badly. I wanted to bash _his _head against a rock for knocking her out. And on top of that, he'd made us completely stop and waste precious time that we could be using to get out of this hellhole and to some serious help! But Aragorn had somehow convinced me to chill out and not kill him. I still don't know how he knows me as well as he does, but he managed to do it. And I gotta give him props, too. Calming me down when I'm pissed isn't easy.

Merry and Pippin were even dead silent. Everyone was worried, because nobody had expected to lose someone this early in the journey. Especially Erin, of all people. And considering the circumstances...yeah, we were all pretty scared.

Suddenly, Pippin shouted "There he is! Legolas is back!" I looked up to see the bastard coming down the stairs, carrying his quiver in one hand and his arrows in the other. Without a word, he walked up to Gandalf and handed him the quiver. Gandalf looked into it and offered Legolas a small smile. "Thank you, Legolas. This will do. Aragorn, you may start."

I didn't watch as Aragorn dipped a cloth that Boromir gave him into the water and started cleaning the blood off of her body. I just looked away and waited for someone to ask me for the bandages. It's not that I have a weak stomach or anything, I just couldn't stand to watch my friend be..._cleaned_...It was so depressing, and it certainly wouldn't help for me to stare at the gash in her head for so long.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that Legolas had actually moved to the back of the crowd, looking in Erin's direction, but not seeming like he was paying any attention to what was going on. Right then, I actually did feel a pang of sympathy for him. The look on his face was terrible. He looked like he was absolutely crushed, which I'm sure he was. I assumed that he wasn't the kind of guy that cried that often, especially in front of others, but he still looked really upset. Boromir walked over to him and whispered something in his ear, but he kept staring blankly at Erin and shook his head.

Eventually, Aragorn asked for the bandages, and I handed them to him quickly. I definitely wasn't ready to actually go over and talk to Legolas yet, but I figured either Aragorn or Gandalf would make me do it soon enough, so I finally looked away and continued pacing, waiting for the report on whether or not Erin was gonna be okay.

oOo

It seemed like forever until Aragorn finally announced that he was done. I looked over at my best friend from where I was sitting on the ground. She now had a fresh layer of white bandages wrapped snugly around her head, covering the gash. The blood had completely been cleaned off of her face, and had been removed from her hair and clothes as best as possible. She still looked pale, though.

The silence stretched on for what seemed like an eternity, until Pippin finally asked the dreaded question. "Is she going to die?"

"No," Aragorn said. "She will live. She lost blood, but not enough for it to be fatal. It may take her another day before she awakes, though."

"What do we do until then?" Sam spoke next.

"We must press on," Gandalf said immediately. "Already we have lingered here too long. These mines are no longer safe. It will take four days to reach the other side, and we cannot wait for Erin to awaken."

"But we can't just leave her here!" I said.

Aragorn shook his head. "We will not abandon her. We will take turns carrying her until she wakes and is able to walk on her own again. It is our only solution."  
I nodded, an enormous amount of pressure lifting off of me. _She's gonna be okay. Erin's gonna live and be fine._

"I will carry her first," Aragorn volunteered. "Boromir, Legolas, Gimli and I will work in shifts." He tenderly reached down and lifted her so that he was holding her bridal style. "Let us go."

With that, everyone quickly grabbed their stuff and started walking. I stayed right by Aragorn's side the entire time, watching Erin for any sign of movement. I don't even remember that much of our first day in Moria. It seemed like an endless expanse of twisting, turning, rocky tunnels, with a few staircases and rickety bridges thrown in here and there. After awhile, Erin was handed off to Boromir who was close to the front of the line, but I stayed back with Aragorn. Merry and Pippin went back to having completely pointless conversations with each other, and Frodo seemed a bit more eager to talk with Gandalf now, but there was still an eerie cloud of gloom that felt like it was hanging over the Fellowship. Despite both Aragorn and Gandalf saying everything would be okay, tensions were still high, and would probably stay that way until Erin woke up.

oOo

The second and third days were not much different than the first. The third day was when Aragorn finally convinced me to go talk to Legolas, though. I approached him when we stopped to rest for the day. He had sort of excluded himself from the others, sitting out on the edge of camp and watching Erin from a distance. I stood next to him. "You know, I didn't mean what I sad the other day. Gandalf's right, it isn't your fault that she got hurt. If anything, we should blame the rock that she tripped over for being in the way. It's not-"

"No," he interrupted me. "No, it is my fault. If I had not pushed her away, none of this would have happened."

I sighed. _I figured he was gonna be this way. _"Look. I'm not gonna give you hell about it anymore, because I think you've beaten yourself up enough already. I do think you should be the one to explain to her what happened when she wakes up, though." I looked at him knowingly. "Somehow I think her words will have a greater impact on you than mine."

"I would not blame her if she never wanted to speak to me again," he said sadly.

"Don't think like that," I said, putting a hand on his shoulder. At my touch, he finally looked over at me. "You and I both know that Erin will forgive you eventually."

"Would she?" He looked worried.

I nodded. "Of course she will."

Legolas looked away again and sighed. "I just...I do not know what to do anymore. I only wanted to keep her safe."

"Well, if you want my advice," I said, "then you need to apologize to her for being so overprotective when she wakes up. If there's one thing you should know about Erin by now, it's that she doesn't like being treated like some fragile thing that'll shatter if you so much as touch her." Legolas didn't answer. "Just let her make her own decisions, Legolas. She's not stupid." I stood up and left the elf again, walking back to where Gandalf was sitting.

The old wizard looked up at me. "Ah, Kaia. How are you, my dear?"

I plopped down next to him. "I'm alright. I don't like these caves, though." I looked around at where we were sitting. Gandalf and I were on top of a rock that overlooked a very deep, very black pit that had a series of stone bridges across it and a broken, long abandoned old water wheel sticking out of part of the wall. "They're a bit too dark and creepy for me."

Gandalf nodded. "I also have a sense of foreboding." He looked at me seriously. "There is much evil here, Kaia. Hopefully our presence will go unnoticed, and our passage through these mines will go smoothly."

I chuckled. "Somehow I doubt that."


	10. Drama in Dwarf City

**A/N: What's this? Two updates in one day? *gasp* :O It actually might be three. XD I'm excited to write all of the Moria scenes, so I might try and get one more chapter done before I go to bed tonight. Ahhh, the joys of summer vacation. ;)**

Innocence & Instinct: Chapter Ten

Erin's POV

The first thing I remember feeling when I came back to my senses was pain. It wasn't a horrible, searing pain or anything, just a mild throbbing. I took a deep breath of air through my nose, smelling the musty, dank air. The air was cool and comfortable, but my head ached terribly, and I didn't want to open my eyes because I thought that would only make it worse. My arms and legs felt stiff, and my throat was dry, so the first thing I said was "Can I have water?" Unfortunately, my voice was rough and scratchy from lack of use, so it came out as more of a quiet, awkward mumble.

Suddenly, I heard a voice next to me. It was also quiet. "Erin? Was that you? Merry! Merry, she's awake!"

There was a groan, and then another voice. "What're you going on about now, Pippin?"

"Erin's awake!" A moment later, the same voice was whispering in my ear. "Erin, stay right here. I'll go wake up Aragorn."

_What? What's going on? Why does my head hurt so much? _I remembered the Fellowship, and fighting the Watcher in the Water..._oh, yeah. I was knocked out. How in the world did that happen? _

"Pip, she couldn't go anywhere even if she wanted to!" Merry called out. I heard him sigh, and then his voice was in my ear. "Sorry about that, Erin. He's stupid sometimes."

If I could, I would've laughed. Instead, I finally decided that now would be a good time to open my eyes. Upon doing so, I squinted instinctively to block out bright light, but...there was none. _Right. Because we're in Moria, I guess. _I opened my eyes fully and groaned as I stared at the rocky cavern above me. I was about to open my mouth and say something to Merry, when Aragorn appeared next to me, crouched down on one knee. "Hi," I managed to say.

He grinned and chuckled a bit. "I almost didn't believe Pippin when he told me you were awake."

"Well, I am," I said, smiling. "Can I sit up?"

He nodded, and grabbed my left arm, Merry taking the right, and helped me sit up. Pippin adjusted some soft cushiony thing that wasn't a pillow behind my head as I was propped up against a wall. Aragorn looked at the two hobbits. "Go tell Kaia and Gandalf that she has woken up." They nodded and ran off. I looked around to see the rest of the Fellowship curled up in various places on the ground, sleeping.

I saw the faces of Frodo and Sam laying nearby me, though Sam had also awoken and was smiling at me. "Erin! You're alive!"

I laughed, then winced as the throbbing increased a bit. "Yeah...did you expect me not to be?"

Sam was about to respond, when suddenly there was a shout from across the area. "WHAT?" That made everyone else jump, and I looked up to see Kaia tossing her blankets behind her and running over to me, dropping to her knees on my side. "Oh my God...you fucking bitch!" She grabbed me and hugged me hard. "Don't you ever scare me like that again!"

I cringed again. "Ow..."

She immediately let go. "Sorry! I'll stop. Did you just wake up?" I noticed at this point that the rest of the Fellowship had gathered in a semicircle around me, all with smiles on their faces.

I nodded a bit, not wanting to cause any more pain in my head. "Yeah. What happened? Did I miss anything?"

At this, a slight anger flickered in Kaia's eyes, and she sighed. Turning to the circle of men, she asked "Well, Legolas? You gonna answer her or what?"

I followed her gaze and looked up at the elf curiously. The look on his face was like...it was something I couldn't even place. He seemed so happy, but so worried at the same time. There was silence for awhile as we just stared at each other. "What's going on?" I asked.

Legolas took a deep breath and looked down. _"Goheno nin," _he whispered. (Forgive me.) "It is my fault."

I frowned. "I don't get it. What do you-"

"I...I saw you out there with the Watcher...alone...and I did not want you to get hurt, so I...I pushed you away." He didn't meet my gaze.

I remembered feeling someone shove me to the side. "That was you?" I asked.

He nodded, looking shameful. "Yes. You hit a rock, and...and you were knocked unconscious."

I gingerly reached up and touched the spot that was throbbing, feeling bandages where I had expected to feel hair. Everything slowly clicked in my brain. I was injured...and almost died...because Legolas had been overprotective..._again._

He finally looked back up at me. "I am so sorry," he said quietly.

I didn't say anything at first, still trying to figure everything out. Finally, I narrowed my eyes at him. _"Garich i dh__ô__l goll o Orch," _I spat. (You have the hollow head of an Orc.)

Aragorn shot a warning glance at me. "Erin..."

Legolas looked hurt, but it also seemed like he'd been expecting it. He dropped his gaze again. "What in the world were you thinking?" I asked. "Please, explain your logic behind this, Smart One! I don't see it!"

"Erin," Aragorn said sharply. "That is not necessary. It was by complete accident that you hit your head. Legolas did not intend to hurt you."

I pulled my arm out of his grasp, still glaring at the elf. "That isn't what I'm pissed about." At this, Legolas looked back up at me. Suddenly, I felt awkward still sitting on the ground. "Help me up," I said to Kaia.

She shot me a knowing look. "Erin, is that really a good idea?"

"I'm not gonna start a ballet performance or anything, Kaia! Just help me up!"

She rolled her eyes, but obeyed. Aragorn grabbed my other arm, both of them supporting me as I got to my feet. For the first few seconds, it felt like a mistake. Everything started spinning, and I had to lean up against the wall behind me to catch my breath and regain my balance. After about a minute or so, I was able to at least successfully stand on my own, and I took a step closer to Legolas, ignoring the throbbing in my head.

"Do you think I'm some sort of _child?" _I said hotly, clenching my fists. It probably didn't have quite the affect I wanted it to since I was about as dizzy as a drunkard, but I still had to do this. "What is with you? You've seen me fight before. I've trained right in front of you! I've even saved you from captivity once! What more do I have to do to prove to you that I can fight on my own? I'm not gonna die if I get so much as one little scratch on my cheek, Legolas! Stop treating me like I'm some sort of weak little girl!" I stepped closer again, so close that my face was only inches from his. "I don't need you to act like my guardian, and I _certainly _don't need you to dictate what I can and can't do! Leave me alone!" With that, I turned away and slowly sat back down again. Even that had left me incredibly dizzy again and slightly out of breath, but I could see in Legolas' eyes that he was ashamed and guilty.

Once I had sat back down, the crowd of people around me dispersed, leaving Kaia and Aragorn still by my side. Aragorn gave me something to drink and eat that was supposed to help me get better faster, then left to go back to bed. That left Kaia and I to hang out by ourselves.

It was quiet for awhile as I chewed on a piece of bread, glaring at Legolas' back as he slept. _Heck, I can't even eat properly without making my head feel like it's gonna explode. _I set the bread down and took a drink of water.

"How's your head doing?" Kaia asked.

I shrugged. "Pounding, but I guess I'm just gonna have to suck it up and wait for it to go away." I looked over at her. "What happened while I was out? Anything major?"

She shook her head. "No. Just lots of walking."

"How many days have we been traveling?"

"Three."

I nodded. _Then that means tomorrow's the day that we'll be fighting the Orcs and the Balrog. _I glanced over at Kaia, who was spacing out. _Should I tell her? I don't really want her to be that freaked out when the attack happens, but...No. I can't risk it. She could end up telling someone else in the Fellowship, and then we'd all be screwed. As much as I wish I could save Gandalf, he has to die in order to become Gandalf the White. Without his wizard promotion, he won't have enough power to free Th__é__oden from Saruman's mind poisoning. _"So...how's life?"

She looked back at me and laughed quietly. "It's not bad. I can't wait until we get out of here, though. I've seen way too many dwarf corpses in three days."

I smiled. "Guess that's an upside to me being knocked out. I didn't have to deal with all the walking around through people's bodies and stuff."

"Yeah. Do you think you'll be able to walk tomorrow?"

_I sure hope so. _"I don't know. Probably. It's pretty much just my head that has to heal. Speaking of which..." I pointed to the small pile of medical things that Aragorn had left out for us. "Should we switch my bandages? I think I'm gonna go back to sleep. I'm taking as much rest as I can get."

Kaia nodded. "I'll take these off." She carefully pulled the ones that I currently wore off of my head and beamed. "Hey, it stopped bleeding!"

I blinked. "Seriously?"

"Yeah!"

"Thank the Lord!" I said, exhaling. "Maybe I will be back on my feet pretty soon."

"It's scabbing over," Kaia reported as she dumped some water from a leather flask onto a piece of cloth and cleaned the area again. "It doesn't look infected, either."

"Sweet." I waited patiently as she wrapped fresh bandages around my head. "I'll be so friking happy if this will all be done with by tomorrow. I mean, I guess I can deal with a headache, but...man, it's annoying."

"I'm sure," she replied. "Okay, I'm done. You can lay down now."

I smiled and slipped back down into a laying position. "Thanks, bro. You're awesome."

"No problem," she said before walking off to her own bed.

I stared up at the ceiling in silence for awhile as I tried to fall asleep. _I hope everything goes the way it should tomorrow. _It hit me right then that this would be my first time that I ever had to legitimately fight Orcs. _I __really__ hope everything goes the way it should._

oOo

Kaia's POV

The next time I was woken up, it was from Pippin again. "Kaia! Gandalf says we're leaving!"

I groaned and rolled over, smiling up at the hobbit. "Morning, Pip."

He frowned. "Is it morning? How can you tell?"

"I can't. Just a lucky guess," I said as I got to my feet. I walked over to where Erin was, and smiled as I saw her get up by herself. "Look at you! Back to normal, I guess?"

She smiled at me, but was still leaning against the wall. "Sort of. I wanted to see if I'd be able to walk today." She took a breath, then looked at me. "If I fall, you'll catch me, right?"

I laughed. "Sure."

Erin paused for a moment, preparing herself, then shakily took a step forward. Then another. Then another. After walking forward a few feet, she stopped and slowly turned around.

"Well?" I asked.

She smiled. "I think I'll be okay. I'm not that dizzy anymore. Once I get used to it, I should be fine."

I grinned. "Nice! You're incredibly lucky, you know that?"

"Well, I've always told you that I have the immune system of a bear."

I laughed. "Do they even have good immune systems?"

"Heck if I know." We both laughed, and she carefully got back down on her knees to start gathering up her things.

Within fifteen minutes, we were on our way again. Gandalf, of course, led the group as he always did. Legolas was walking right behind him, followed by Gimli, then Sam, Frodo, Merry, and Pippin. Boromir followed them, and behind him were Erin and I, with Aragorn bringing up the rear. We walked for quite awhile, and Erin seemed to be doing fine. At one point, we came to a tall, very steep flight of stairs that we were to climb, and Erin looked up at them with an "Oh God" expression.

I stopped and put a hand on her shoulder. "Can you get up there?"

She thought about that for a minute. "Yes." Without any more hesitation, she stepped forward and started working her way up the stairs. I stayed close behind her to catch her if she slipped, but she didn't. _How the hell does she do that? _

After we reached the top of the stairs, the line suddenly stopped. Gandalf was standing in front of a path that split into three parts: left, middle, and right. Each one was begun by a stone archway that had been carved into the wall and led to a staircase that went off in different directions. You couldn't really see where they were headed. He stared at them for a moment, and then finally whispered "...I have no memory of this place."

So what did we do? We stopped and sat. Erin took this as another opportunity to sleep on a small part of the rock that jutted out from below the pathway, and Gandalf sat on a ledge just above the rest of us, who were crowded together on the small landing at the top of the stairs. Aragorn and Boromir sat on the top step, smoking their pipes. Legolas was leaning up against a rock between Erin and Aragorn, and Merry was on the ground by his feet. Pippin was directly across from him, and Sam and Frodo were perched on boulder behind him. I was sitting on the wall with my feet braced up against the rock that Merry's head was resting against, next to Legolas. All of us were doing nothing but staring out into the darkness of the mines. Well...almost all of us.

"Are we lost?" Pippin whispered.

"No," Merry replied.

"I think we are."

"Shhhh! Gandalf's thinkin'."

"...Merry!"

"_What?"_

"...I'm hungry."

I smiled to myself at the two as they went back and forth. _It seems like no matter what's going on, one of them always wants food. _

There was the sudden noise of someone scuffling about, and I looked up to see Frodo looking out into the pits with a panicked expression. He then jumped up from his seat and ran up to Gandalf. "There's something down there!" he exclaimed.

At this, the rest of us tensed and started scanning the area, preparing for the worst. I was trying to see whatever it was that Frodo saw, and was failing miserably. "Hey! Legolas!" He looked over at me. "What's he freaking out about? Do you see anything?"

He looked back out for a moment, then turned back to me and nodded. He pointed out to a particularly dark spot. "There."

I followed his gaze, not seeing anything. "What is it?"

"It's Gollum," I heard Gandalf say nonchalantly. At this, I saw Legolas glare at the shadowy area.

"Gollum...isn't he that creepy little dude that was obsessed with the Ring for a long time?" I asked.

"Yes," Legolas said. "It is the same one that escaped from my father's dungeons some time ago."

I blinked and looked at him. He looked like he wanted to shoot the dude really, _really _badly. "Seriously? Aw man, that sucks. I'm sorry."

"It was not your fault," he said simply.

I sighed and leaned back on the wall again, listening to Gandalf talk about this Gollum guy. "...and now the Ring has drawn him near," he was saying. "He will never be rid of his _need _for it. He hates and loves the Ring, as he hates and loves himself. Sméagol's life is a sad story. Yes...Sméagol, he was once called...before the Ring found him. Before it drove him mad." I frowned. _That is kinda sad. I feel bad for the guy._

"It's a pity Bilbo didn't kill him when he had the chance!" Frodo suddenly sneered. _Dang! What did he ever do to you?_

"Pity?" Gandalf asked. "It was pity that stayed Bilbo's hand. Many that live deserve death, and some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them, Frodo?" Silence. "Do not be too eager to deal out death and judgment. Even the very wise cannot see all ends. My heart tells me that Gollum has some part to play yet, for good or ill, before this is over. The pity of Bilbo may rule the fate of many."

Again, Frodo was quiet for awhile. When he did speak up again, he sounded sad and burdened. "I wish the Ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had happened!"

I glanced up at their backs. _Dang. It must suck to be Frodo right now. _

Luckily, Gandalf had good advice, as he always did. "So who all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us. There are other forces at work in this world, Frodo, besides the will of evil. Bilbo was meant to find the Ring, in which case you also were meant to have it. And that is an encouraging thought."

I thought about Gandalf's words. _Many that live deserve death...and some that die deserve life. _I looked down at Erin's sleeping form. _Maybe that's why we're here. To save someone._

All of a sudden, Gandalf spoke up again. "Oh! It's that way!"

"He's remembered!" Merry cried, putting out his own pipe and standing up quickly.

I jumped down and shook Erin awake. "We're moving again."

She rubbed her eyes and stretched as she slid off of her rocky bed. "Okay."

"No," Gandalf said as we all started following him down the left passageway, "but the air doesn't smell so foul down here. When in doubt, Master Meriadoc, always follow your nose." I laughed at that as we made our way down another flight of stairs.

After awhile, we came out of the tunnels and into what seemed like a very open area in the mines. Gandalf took a few steps forward and then stopped. "Let me risk a little more light." His staff glowed much brighter, filling the area with light, and I don't think a single person could keep their jaw from dropping as we looked around. "Behold! The dwarf city of Dwarrodelf."

I was in awe. Literally everywhere you looked, pillars of incredible size sprouted up out of the ground. Strong, well-chiseled carvings of the finest quality were on the bottoms and tops for decoration, and the pillars seemed to stretch on endlessly. It really was a dwarven masterpiece.

"Well there's an eye opener, and no mistake," Sam muttered.

"It's amazing," I agreed.

We continued on through the hallways, but much slower, everyone admiring the handiwork around us. I couldn't stop gawking at the entire thing. It was just so incredible to think that a race so small had created something this amazing out of solid rock.

Erin walked up beside me, grinning. "What do you think?"

"Way cooler than Rivendell," I said.

She nodded, also admiring it all. "And well worth the trip."


	11. A Major Loss

Innocence & Instinct: Chapter Eleven

Erin's POV

I grinned from ear to ear as we walked through the Dwarrodelf. Peter Jackson's movie didn't do it justice. Not by a long shot. This was one of the things I'd been looking forward to on the journey...seeing this incredible architecture. I hummed the music that was typically played during this scene quietly. At that moment, I completely forgot about the Balrog and the battle that was just around the corner. Until Gimli broke the silence with a shout, anyway. The stout man took off running, and I instantly recognized the doorway to the room where Balin's tomb was.

"Gimli!" Gandalf called after him, but it did nothing to stop the dwarf. The rest of us followed him into the room, and I felt bad for Gimli as I walked in to see him sobbing, on his knees by his cousin's grave. Gandalf walked up to the top of the smooth coffin lid that shone from the shaft of daylight that poured in through a lone window. "Here lies Balin...son of Fundin...Lord of Moria. He is dead, then. It is as I feared." I remembered that Balin was one of the dwarves that went on the journey to the Lonely Mountain with Bilbo and Gandalf, too.

It was quiet for a moment as we all stood behind Gimli, letting him grieve. I bowed my head and closed my eyes out of respect for his cousin. I eventually opened them and started staring at the floor. "We must move on," Legolas whispered to Aragorn. "We cannot linger."

I heard Gandalf pry the old book out of the skeleton's bony fingers, but I wasn't paying attention as he read aloud. I was actually starting to grow nervous about the battle. My hand settled on the handle of my sword, and I drummed my fingers on it, anxiously awaiting for Gandalf to finish. "We cannot get out..." He looked up at us all, and I met his gaze from where I stood behind Legolas. "...They are coming."

There was a loud bang, and I almost laughed at the fact that I was the only one who didn't flinch at the noise. All eyes turned to Pippin, who stood by the well, wide-eyed. Two seconds later, the rest of the skeleton's body fell backwards, then the chain, then the bucket, all tumbling down into the black pit far below. Pippin winced at every loud noise that echoed off of the well's stone wall.

Everyone held their breath, worried that we had been caught. Once again, I subtly loosened my sword in its sheath. When he was positive that we'd been spared, Boromir let out a sigh of relief. I glanced next to me at Kaia, who mouthed _"We got lucky_." I shook my head no in the smallest motion possible, and she frowned. _"Get ready," _I mouthed back.

Gandalf slammed the book shut. "Fool of a Took! Throw yourself in next time and rid us of your stupidity!" He yanked his staff and hat back from the hobbit's grasp, and I felt a pang of pity for him.

Then the first drum beat sounded.

Every single person heard it, and every single person froze, praying to their lucky stars that they were hearing things.

Then it came again. _Boom._

They got faster...and faster, and then I heard the faintest screech from far away. It only lasted half a second, but it was all I needed to know what it was.

"Frodo!" Sam gasped, staring down at his sword. It glowed bright blue.

"Orcs!" Legolas yelled as more screeches and yells were heard from the distance.

Boromir ran towards the door. "Don't!" I shouted, running after him. I skidded to a halt, nearly crashing into him as he jerked back, barely missing two arrows to the face.

He turned around and looked at Aragorn and I as we pulled the wooden doors shut. "They have a cave troll," he said casually.

"Don't you just hate it when people bring those along?" I replied, slamming an axe down on top of the door handles to keep it shut.

"Erin!" I turned around and caught another spear that Legolas tossed to me, adding it to the collection. When our work was done, the three of us stepped back. I took my place between Boromir and Legolas, who already had an arrow ready. He glanced over at me and said "Stay safe."  
I glared at him and didn't respond. He looked away. Looking at Kaia, who was behind Aragorn, I winked at her. _"Good luck," _I mouthed. She nodded in response, and I drew my own sword.

Gimli growled from behind me. "Let them come! There is one dwarf yet in Moria who still draws breath!" I grinned.

Then the banging started. My pulse raced as the Orcs started cutting through the wood, trying to break down the door. I caught a glimpse of one of them pressing an eye up to one of the holes, and I sneered at it. It screeched as Legolas released his first arrow, hitting the eye dead center. Aragorn shot the next, killing off one more. Legolas drew back one more shot...

A second later, the door on the left was kicked down, and the other flung to the side as the hideous creatures poured in. I wasted no time in jumping forward and greeting the first one I met with a slice across the face. Orc after Orc came through, and I killed each one I saw. Pretty soon I heard cries from behind me as the others started fighting. I tried to glance behind me to find Kaia, but there were too many Orcs swarming around me.

When I did get the chance to turn around, I saw Aragorn right next to me. He let out a scream of fury, and then sliced the head clean off of an Orc. Blood squirted from the neck, and it dropped to the floor. I nodded in his direction. "Nice!"

He nodded back, and then we both went our own separate ways. I decided to head towards the right wall, as I noticed many of the Orcs were crawling around on the walls. I made my way up to the point where I was right next to the wall, when suddenly one of the Orcs shoved me backwards, causing me to hit the wall as they closed in around me. I screamed a battle cry at them and swung my sword in a wide arc, hitting an entire row of them and slicing open their stomachs. Each time I was touched or pushed, it gave me more adrenaline to fight back twice as hard as before.

Suddenly, there was a roar from the doorway, and I looked up to see the cave troll smash through the doorway with his club, scanning the room for his prey. "Oh crap," I said, turning around and stabbing another Orc in the gut.

oOo

Kaia's POV

Never in my life had I seen more black. It was everywhere. On my clothes, in my hair...you name it. I was doing well enough by myself against these things, but God, there were just so _many! _I paused for a split second after killing another one with my two blades. "Goddamn! Just how many of you are there?"

I heard a loud roar and the sound of breaking stone from behind me, and turned to see two Orcs leading a ginormous grey thing into the room. I quickly killed both of the Orcs that were standing right in front of me, and then ran at the giant grey monster, ducking as he tried to swat me away with his hand. I ran right between his feet and swung my swords like crazy, catching him in the ankles and twice in the crotch. The beast roared in pain. "Yeah!" I shouted at it, slicing up his ankles some more. "How you like that?"

Suddenly, the thing was no longer above me, and I was slicing at air. I turned back around to see it lumbering over towards Sam, who screamed and dove underneath of the troll at the last second. The troll spun around and roared, lifting his foot and preparing to squish him, but was yanked away by Aragorn and Boromir at the last second. I ran over and lifted the hobbit to his feet. "You okay?"  
He caught his breath, then nodded. "You?"

"I'm doing alright," I said. I saw three Orcs coming up on Sam from behind, so I pushed him behind me and took them all down. "Wanna be a team?" I asked over my shoulder.

He was in the process of killing a couple monsters as well. "Sounds like a plan to me!"

oOo

Erin's POV

I looked to my left and saw something come flying towards me. Screaming, I ducked and heard a loud bang as it slammed into the wall next to me. I looked up and panicked as I saw Boromir rolling down towards me, and caught him. "Boromir! Boromir, get up!"

A screech behind me alerted me that I still had enemies to fight, and I spun back around, raising my sword just in time to clash blades with an Orc. Since I was on my knees, I was at a disadvantage, and this Orc was particularly strong. My arms shook under the pressure of him pushing against me. Out of nowhere, a knife embedded itself into the Orc's back, and it dropped to the ground. I looked up to see Aragorn standing below my platform. "Thank you!" I shouted. I turned back to Boromir, who was coming back to his senses, and got him back on his feet. We nodded in thanks to each other as well, and then I started cutting through the enemies again.

I was doing well, when something caught my eye from below me. In the midst of my fighting, I looked down to see Legolas standing on the main floor, aiming to take a shot at the troll, with an Orc coming up behind him, blade raised. "NO!" I shouted. I took a running jump off of the raised portion I'd been on and crashed into the Orc's back, tackling him to the ground. I dropped my sword on impact, but was quick to pull a knife out of my belt and slit his throat before he could do anything. I stood up and reached to grab my sword, but it was stepped on by another Orc. I tensed as I heard the metal break under his boot, and backed up. This Orc had two chains, each with a spiked ball on the end that was deadly sharp.

He growled and swung it at me, and I ducked, feeling the air move as they sailed over my head. I pulled out my other knife, one in each hand, and stood up just as he swung at my face again. I crossed my weapons in front of my face and blocked it, but the force of the impact sent me stumbling backwards, where I tripped on an Orc's dead body and fell on my back. The orc towered over me, and I kicked him in the face to buy me some time. He came at me again, and again I kicked him, harder. Now he went backwards, and I had enough time to get back on my feet, throwing a knife at him and smirking as it pierced the flesh of his neck.

Running past the body, I ripped it out and moved on. Hearing the crack of metal against stone, I looked up to see that Legolas was dodging the troll's chain as he whipped it around. I ran over in that direction, knowing they'd need all the help they could get.

oOo

Kaia's POV

Sam and I had made a pretty kickass team for awhile, but eventually we'd gotten split up, and I was now on my own again. I was determined to take down what Aragorn had told me was a troll, who was causing all kinds of problems. Currently it was slinging its chain at Legolas, who was dodging it like a boss. After three hits, he got the troll to get its chain wrapped around a stone pillar, then proceeded to run up the chain and onto the troll's head, where he shot it with an arrow and then easily jumped off, landing on his feet.

After he was done with that, I ran up to the same pillar and tried my own tactic. Getting a good start, I ran over and jumped up to the pillar, my left glove tearing as I started sliding down its side. I then pushed myself to jump off of the pillar with my feet, sending me in the direction of the troll. I was aiming for his head, but the damn thing moved when he shouldn't have, causing me to catch myself by grabbing onto the shred of chain that still acted as a collar on his neck.

My body's momentum caused me to slam into his, and he, of course, flipped out and tried reaching around to behind his right shoulder to pull me off. Luckily, I was dangling by that spot that you can almost reach, but not quite on your back, and when I saw the hand come flying at me, I screamed and slashed clean through one of his fingers with my one blade. The other one I had dropped during my jump, and I doubted I'd get it back. A moment later, the troll's hand came for me again, and this time I stabbed him in the middle of the palm. It roared in pain, and I twisted my body around to get three good slashes in his side before I dropped and rolled once I hit the ground.

I was back on my feet quickly, and now that the troll had identified me as his attacker, he was pissed. He picked up his huge ass club from the ground and swung at me, but I dove forward as Sam had done and hit him deep in the back of his thigh before he could hurt me. Before the troll could turn around, I cut into his other leg with my one remaining sword, then stepped backwards as he turned around again, swinging his club like a drunkard.

Apparently I misjudged how wide that thing could swing, because he managed to clip me with it, giving me a decent cut in my left side. I winced from the pain, but didn't stop fighting. Instead, I pounced on top of his hand like a cat and ran up his arm, stopping at his head, where I drove my sword deep into his skull.

The troll roared in pain again, but even that didn't quite kill him. He threw his head back just as I jumped over it and roared again as I sliced his face on the way down. At that moment, both a knife and an arrow went deep into the troll's throat, and I looked to up see Legolas and Erin standing side by side, looking at each other. The troll groaned, stumbled forward, let out a weird, guttural noise, and then fell face-first to the ground, nearly squishing me.

As I pulled myself off of the ground, I noticed that it had gone silent. Looking around, I grinned triumphantly as I realized that every Orc in the room had been killed. Every member of the Fellowship had survived. "We did it!" I said. "We beat them!"

"No..." Erin said suddenly. Everyone looked over at her. "We're not done yet. There's gotta be more Orcs than that.

Gandalf nodded. "To the Bridge of Khazad-Dûm."

With that, everyone took off running again. I didn't even have time to look for my other sword as we ran out of the room. As I kept pace with Erin, I noticed that she was lacking her weapons, too. "Where's your sword?"

"Some jerk Orc stepped on it and broke it," she said.

I frowned. "Bummer." She was out of knives, too.

We kept running, tearing through the pillar room and continuing on. Erin and I weren't the best runners, so we were at the back of the line. I kept my sight trained on Gandalf's glowing light, trying not to think about how much my legs ached.

Suddenly, there was a chorus of screeches from behind us, and I turned around to see Orcs following us. Thousands of them. They were coming out of every crevice possible, from the floor and the ceiling. "Fuck! Not more Orcs!" I turned my head forward again and kept running, praying we'd make it out alive.

oOo

Erin's POV

I slowed down to prevent myself from crashing into Legolas' back as we stopped. Orcs surrounded us on all sides. Since I had no sword, all I could do was stand there, prepared to run again, and make it look like I was freaked out just like the others were.

Kaia looked scared. She stood beside me, clutching her short sword with both hands. "Oh God...do we have to fight all of them? We'll never make it!" I didn't respond, and glanced up at Legolas, who had moved in front of me, aiming an arrow at an Orc's face. This time I couldn't blame him since I was almost defenseless.

The Orcs pushed us into a tight circle, screeching and jeering at us, evil grins on all of their faces. Just as I was able to get my breath back from the sprinting I'd just done, there was a low growl from the end of our hallway. Now the Orcs were the ones looking up in fear, and they all screamed and ran off when the next growl sounded. I straightened and stared into the glowing orange light that was steadily building from off in the distance. I knew what was coming, but the others didn't. Legolas shifted his bow around for a couple seconds, trying to locate the source of the growling, but I stopped him with a hand on his arm. "Don't. It's no use."

Boromir then spoke up. "What is this new devilry?" Even Aragorn cast Gandalf a fearful glance as he leaned on his staff, eyes closed.

"A Balrog," he said grimly. "A demon of the ancient world." I saw Kaia's eyes go wide as saucers. "This foe is beyond any of you. RUN!"

Before the word was even out of his mouth, I took off with the wizard. Even though I knew that I wouldn't actually have to fight the Balrog, the thought of seeing that thing up close scared the crap out of me. I was so caught up in running for my life that I completely forgot about the drop off just inside the door, and screamed as I skidded to a halt, being yanked back and falling on top of Legolas as he caught me. I got back on my feet, and pulled him up as well. "Thanks."

"Of course," he replied. "Where is your sword?"

"It got broken," I said.

His brow furrowed in concern. "Then will you at least let me be protective now, until you have your weapons back?"

I looked at him for a minute, and finally gave in. "Fine," I sighed. "But just this once."

Kaia then ran past us. "Erin! Legolas! Come on!" I turned and followed her, the elf right on my tail. We hurried down two flights of steps that zigzagged over a vast expanse of nothing. All I could see if I looked down was a few flames flickering up here and there. Typically I had no problem with heights, but this was a bit extreme. I shuddered as we stopped in front of the staircase with a gap in it.

Legolas was the first one to leap over. He then turned around and motioned for the wizard to jump. "Gandalf!"

Suddenly, the Balrog roared again, and from behind us chunks of the stone ceiling broke off and plummeted to the dark abyss below. Gandalf turned around to look at it, but I stepped in front of him. "Go!" He nodded and hopped over.

I stepped forward next, and did probably the dumbest thing I could've done at that point. I looked down, and froze on the spot. _Oh gosh, what if I fall? What if I don't make it? What if I trip at the last second and- _

"Erin! Jump!" I looked up at Legolas, who had his arms spread, waiting to catch me. "Do it now and get it over with!"

_He's right. _I took a deep breath and leapt forward, closing my eyes and wrapping my arms around Legolas as I crashed into him. When my feet were on solid rock again, I opened my eyes and looked up at him. He let me go and smiled before turning back to help the others.

Suddenly, there was a ping as an arrow hit the ground where I had been standing moments before on the other side. The hobbits all jumped and shuffled backwards as another arrow just missed their feet. "Crap," I muttered as I turned to the side. I'd forgotten about the Orcs that shot at us. Aragorn was firing at them, but one archer wasn't enough. And Legolas was still preoccupied with catching the others as they came across...I thought for a second, and then turned to him. "Legolas! Give me your bow!"

He turned to me. "What? Why?"

"Just do it!" Thankfully, he handed it to me, and I pulled an arrow out of his quiver.

"What are you doing?"

"Help the others!" Turning towards the Orc archers, I fitted the arrow to the string and took a steadying breath. "Lessons with Haldir, don't fail me now." I caught sight of one of the Orcs that was high up above us, aimed, and fired. The arrow sailed through the air and (from what I could tell) hit him in the leg, sending him tumbling into the pits below. Not an impressive shot, but it worked. I heard Boromir take off with Merry and Pippin, and the sound of the rocks breaking. After grabbing another arrow from Legolas' quiver, I fired again, taking down another one. There was only one more left now. I fired again, but this time I missed. He fired back at me, and was just a hair off, because the arrow bounced off the rock at my feet. I grabbed one of his last arrows and took a final shot. It went flying, and a moment later, there was a screech as the last one fell to his doom.

I smiled, proud of myself, and turned back to the Fellowship. However, the grin was instantly wiped off of my face when I saw who was still on the other side of the now incredibly large gap. Aragorn, Frodo, and Kaia. "No!"

The rock from the ceiling crashed through the stairs behind them, just like it should've. "Lean forward!" Aragorn shouted. _Oh please God, let all go well..._I watched, terrified, as the stairway slowly fell towards us.

"Come on!" Legolas called out.

The staircase crashed into ours, and dust flew everywhere as Kaia fell into my arms. I let her go. "Thank God! I was scared you wouldn't make it!"

"Doesn't that happen in the movie?" Kaia asked, making sure no one else heard her as we took off running again with the others.

"Yeah, but not with you on it," I said.

We continued running down the stairs, quickly reaching the lower levels. There was fire everywhere. It was so hot, I felt like I'd just walked into hell. We passed by Gandalf and were about halfway across the room when a loud roar sounded. Kaia and I stopped dead in our tracks and turned to see the Balrog roaring directly in Gandalf's face, with breath so hot that you could see the air rippling around him. The thing was enormous. It looked exactly as it did in the movie, only five thousand times scarier because I was seeing it in person. I started running again, grabbing Kaia's arm to drag her along as she yelled at the wizard. "Gandalf! Come on! Erin, what about Gandalf?"

"We don't have time!" I shouted. "He'll come, just run!"

When we emerged onto the bridge, I was again a bit shaken by how high up we were, especially considering the fact that the bridge wasn't even wide enough for one person to run across. I sped across it as fast as I could, stopping and turning to see Kaia also coming across. I didn't even get to say a word to her before she turned back and saw her wizard friend standing in the middle of the bridge. "GANDALF! GET OVER HERE!"

The Balrog was standing on the opposite side of the bridge now, looming overtop of Gandalf, who looked like an ant compared to that demon thing. "You cannot pass!" he yelled.

"GANDALF!" Frodo cried.

"No!" Kaia darted forward, trying to draw her sword, but I grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her back.

"Kaia! No! You can't!" I cried.

She looked at me, eyes wide and panicked. "Are you BLIND? Gandalf's out there against that thing alone! We've gotta help him!"

"NO!" I shouted at her. "You have to stay here!" At that moment, the Balrog roared again, and we both looked up to see it bring its sword don on Gandalf, who was wielding his staff in the air like a blazing white torch.

"GANDALF!" Kaia screamed again. "Let me GO!"

"Aragorn!" I shouted. I was losing my grip. "Help me!"

The ranger ran up and also pulled Kaia back. "Kaia, you must stay! It is too dangerous!"

"I don't care!" she cried. "I don't care about danger! Gandalf's out there alone!"

The Balrog roared in fury again, and we all watched as his sword of fire dissolved after coming in contact with Gandalf's power. "Go back to the Shadow!" The wizard ordered firmly.

The Balrog snorted and withdrew a whip made of flames next, cracking it once in the air to intimidate. It did its job on me, because I certainly flinched.

"YOU...SHALL NOT...PASS!" There was a loud crack as Gandalf drove his staff into the center of the bridge. There was a flash, and then nothing. The Balrog still stepped forward, ready to end the wizard's life.

"NO!" Kaia shouted.

She struggled again, but I pulled her back. "Wait," I ordered.

The Balrog roared again, but this time in despair as the bridge cracked and crumbled from its weight, breaking off right in front of Gandalf's feet. The creature of shadow and flame slowly fell to its doom, its flaming whip dropping down into the pits with him. Gandalf let out a weary groan and turned around to us at the completion of his task, and I felt Kaia relax under my grip. "Oh, thank God," she sighed.

But it wasn't over yet. In that moment, the Balrog cracked his whip one last time, and it found its way around Gandalf's ankle, jerking him downwards. At the sudden yank, the wizard lost his grip on his sword and staff, both falling down off of the bridge. Gandalf himself was dragged to the very edge of the bridge, and as soon as she saw him struggling to lift himself, Kaia screamed. "NO! Let me go! I have to help him!" I couldn't bring myself to say anything as I held her back, tears already filling my eyes as the old wizard finally gave up, hanging on by his fingertips. Frodo was screaming in horror as well.

"...Fly, you fools!" And then he released himself, following his foe into the shadowy depths far below him.

"NOOOOO!" Frodo screamed in agony.

That wasn't the heartbreaker for me this time. Kaia's was worse. "GANDALF! NOOOOOO!"

I saw Aragorn staring blankly at the bridge as well. "Aragorn! Come on!" I cried. He snapped out of his trance, and he quickly gathered Kaia in his arms and carried her up the steps behind us, coming out right after me.

We all stumbled out into the daylight, but none of us were happy, despite the fact that we'd finally escaped the dark clutches of Moria. I stood still for a moment, the grief of losing Gandalf slowly settling over me. It was a comfort to at least know that he would be back, but having to watch him fall in person was just...horrible.

I walked over to Kaia, who was on her knees not too far away. Standing in front of her, I offered a hand to help her up. "Kaia..." I started, but never finished.

She smacked my hand away. "Get away from me."

I blinked, confused. "What?"

She stopped sobbing momentarily and glared up at me, her voice broken. "I said, get the hell away from me, you bitch!"

"What the...why?" I was beyond confused. _Why is she mad at me?_ "Kaia, what's wrong?"

"You! You fucking _asshole!_ You couldn't have told me that he was gonna die?"

I looked at her seriously. "Kaia, you know I couldn't have told you. It-"

"Why not, huh? Why the hell not?" she sobbed. "You knew how close I was with him, Erin! You knew! And you didn't want to at least prepare me for having to watch him die right in front of me? YOU KNEW IT WOULD HAPPEN! YOU KNEW IT!"

Now I glared back. "You don't think it was hard for me to watch him die, either? You think it was easy for me to let him walk right into that? You have no idea how much I wish I could've save him!"

"YOU COULD'VE FUCKING SAVED HIM! I could've!" she screamed. "You held me back! You purposely stopped me from helping him! YOU LET HIM DIE!"

"He had to die!"

"He didn't fucking have to! Don't lie to me!" Kaia broke down into sobs again. "Get away from me...you traitor! Don't talk to me anymore!"

I opened my mouth to retaliate, but couldn't bring myself to say anything else. Instead, I turned and walked away, tears streaming down my face for a different reason now. _I just lost my best friend. I just lost Kaia._ Plopping down on the ground, I pulled my knees up to my chest, rested my face on my arms, and cried. _She hates me now. She doesn't want to talk to me anymore. All because I couldn't trust her enough and clue her in. And now she won't even know that he comes back. Why do I always screw things up? I don't want the power to know what happens next if it leads to this!_

I sat in my sadness for a bit until I heard a familiar voice above me. "Erin? What happened?" I shook my head, but Legolas persisted. "Erin, please...I do not want to see you like this." Still, I didn't move. "You do not have to talk about it if you do not want to."

Finally, I gave in and looked up to see him sitting in front of me with open arms, waiting. I literally crawled into his lap and sat there as he hugged me and I cried into his shirt. We didn't say anything to each other. I just sat there and did my thing while he comforted me. When I finally stopped, I lifted my face and saw him staring down at me, the concern and his own sadness evident in his blue eyes. "What is wrong?"

I coughed and then finally spoke, my voice cracking. "She hates me. Kaia hates me because I knew that Gandalf would die and didn't tell her!" I cried a bit more. "She told me not to talk to her ever again!" I shuddered from both exhaustion and grief and buried my face in his shoulder, crying into his blonde hair. "I'm sorry for messing up your shirt. I'm being gross," I mumbled.

"No, it is fine."

I relaxed and cried a bit more. _Dear God, I'm so lucky to have him. Even when I'm a hot mess, he doesn't care._

After a few minutes, I heard Aragorn's voice close by. "We must move on. Boromir, Legolas, get them up."

"Give them a moment, for pity's sake!" I heard Boromir retaliate.

"Aragorn..." Legolas argued softly.

"By nightfall, these hills will be swarming with Orcs! We must reach the woods of Lothlórien. Come Boromir, Legolas, Gimli! Get them up!"

Legolas sighed, and I lifted my head. "I am sorry, Erin. He is right. We should go." I moved away from him, shivering from being pulled away from his warm hug and going back into the cold winter air. He offered a hand, and I took it, getting shakily to my feet. I sighed and looked down, starting to pull away, but he did not let go. I looked up at Legolas, and he gave my hand one last squeeze of reassurance, along with a halfhearted smile, before releasing me and walking off.

I started to make my way over to where Aragorn was standing, but stopped when I saw Kaia standing with him. Our eyes met again for a quick moment before she looked away. I also dropped my gaze and turned away again, going over to help the hobbits prepare to leave.


	12. They Made it to Lorien! Yay!

**A/N: Woo! Intense chapter last time, no? Lots of drama. Well, believe me when I say that that's just the beginning! The Fellowship will be staying in Lothlórien for about a month, as it says that in the timeline that's in the books. I'm guessing that the next three or four chapters will be in Lórien, because I have plenty of stuff to cover here before they move on. Before we begin, though, I will say that one person has already guessed one of the things that will be revealed (probably in the next chapter). I won't say who, though. ;) Enjoy!**

Innocence & Instinct: Chapter Twelve

Kaia's POV

We wasted no time in getting back on our feet and traveling again, but I wanted time to just sit down and _cry. _Normally, I hated letting other people see me cry, because if others saw me cry back home, everyone would get all freaked out and start fussing over me. Here (or at least, for the moment), everyone understood why I was so upset, so nobody asked what was wrong or was threatening to beat up whoever made me upset.

Speaking of which...I glanced over at Erin as our group was running through an open field. God, what was wrong with her? Did she seriously not trust me enough to tell me that Gandalf wasn't going to make it out of Moria?

A hissing voice that I knew all too well whispered in the back of my mind menacingly. _"I told you she was keeping secrets, Kaia. You can trust none of them..."_

I shook my head, shutting the Ring up. But honestly, at this point...I was seriously starting to reconsider everything that the Ring was telling me. After all, it had been right. Erin had betrayed me. Could I trust her anymore? And if not her, then...could I trust anyone at all?

I was about to debate this more, but stopped as I noticed that we were approaching a large forest. Aragorn, who was right next to me, slowed to a walk with a small smile on his face as we slipped into the trees. They grew incredibly tall, with dark brown trunks and deep green leaves, even in late December. Many of the trees had mosses beginning to crawl up their sides, and a light breeze floated through the area. As soon as I set foot past the first row of these incredible trees, I felt a sense of power and...magic in the air. "What is this place?" I whispered to Aragorn, looking around curiously.

"Lothlórien," he answered, reaching out and touching a tree's trunk. "The Golden Wood. Home to Galadriel, the Lady of Light."

I pursed my lips slightly, recognizing the name of the forest. "Lothlórien..." I muttered. _Where have I heard that before?_ And then it hit me. My thoughts were drawn back to one of the first conversations I'd had with Erin in Rivendell a year ago. _"I've also been hanging out a lot in Lothl__ó__rien, too. I like thinking of it as like...my second home or something." _I glanced over at Erin again. She hardly seemed changed at all. I watched as she walked along aways behind me, eyes on the ground in front of her. _Maybe it's because of you that she's not happy, _a part of me said.

I scowled and looked forward again. _No, it's not my fault. It's hers for not telling me anything when she should've. _Pushing my thoughts about our argument to the side, I heard Gimli warning the hobbits about something.

"Stay close, young hobbits!" he ordered. "They say a great sorceress lives in these woods. An elf witch...of terrible power. All who look upon her...fall under her spell...and are never seen again."

At that moment, I heard a voice inside my head again, but this one wasn't cold and sinister like the Ring's was. _"Kaia..." _I blinked, but kept walking. It sounded much more feminine. _"You have entered my realm...You carry many burdens, child..."_

After she said that, I tensed and looked around. _What the hell? Since when does anyone else know what my problems are?_

_ "Do not be frightened, young one...I am here to help you..." _The voice faded away, but I still glanced from side to side, trying to figure out where that had just come from.

"Well! Here's one dwarf she won't ensnare so easily," Gimli muttered lowly. "I have the eyes of a hawk and the ears of a fox!" Suddenly, he gasped, along with a few others. I looked up from my scanning to see what the problem was, and almost walked right into the arrow that was pointed at my face, mere inches away. Aragorn put up his hands in a peaceful gesture.

I looked up at the tall, blonde elf that was preparing to shoot me. "Uhh...hello..."

oOo

Erin's POV

I wasn't startled at all when the elves popped up and surrounded us. I'd seen it before. In fact, a moment earlier I had been looking around to figure out where they'd come from, but even then I'd been looking the wrong way. Standing behind Merry and Pippin, I placed a hand on each of their shoulders to let them know that we'd be okay. Both of them were staring at the arrows, wide-eyed.

"The dwarf breathes so loud, we could've shot him in the dark." I'd know that voice anywhere. I looked up to see Haldir step forward, dressed in various shades of brown and grey, his blond hair smoothed back and pulled into a partial braid the hung behind his head. Gimli growled at the insult.

Haldir looked around quickly at each member of our Fellowship, his eyes stopping in shock when they landed on me. "Erin?" he asked. _"Man carel le su__í__on?" _(What are you doing here?)

_"Haldir," _I said urgently, _"Henio an__í__ron, boe ammen i dulu l__î__n. Boe ammen veriad l__în__." _(Haldir, we come here for help. We need your protection.) I patted myself on the back mentally for remembering what should've been Aragorn's line.

He nodded in understanding, looked at me for a moment longer, then spoke to everyone in the group. "Come. We will take you to a safer area." He turned and swiftly started walking off, his band of elves nudging us to follow along. I worked my way up to the front so that I was walking next to him. _"Im gelir ceni ad l__í__n," _he said with a smile. (I am happy to see you again.)

I smiled back, though it wasn't a genuine one. _"Manen naly__ë__, mellon n__î__n?" _(How are you, my friend?)

_"Im maer. O man d__ô__r t__ú__liel le? Nostach be Orch gaer." _(I am well. From what land do you come? You smell like ten Orcs.)

I laughed. _"Hantale,"_ I said sarcastically. (Thanks.) _"Telin o Imladris, sel Moria am maer." _(I come from Rivendell, and Moria as well.)

His eyes widened. "Moria?" he asked, switching into Common for whatever reason. "What in all Arda were you doing there?"

"Fighting Orcs and trying to get out. What else would I be doing in there?"

He rolled his eyes, but smiled. "I realized that. I meant, why were you in those vile mines in the first place?"

I looked back over my shoulder at the others, thinking about whether or not I should explain everything now. "...I think it would be best to wait and let Aragorn explain it later. He'd do a better job than me."

Haldir chuckled. "You bring quite an odd party with you. Halflings, a Dwarf, and Elf, another woman, and two Men? Might as well add an Orc to your party. Then you would be carrying all of Middle-Earth with you."

I grinned. "Yeah, we're a bunch of weirdos. Like I said, everything will be explained later." It was silent for a moment, and I wondered if he was going to mention that deal we'd made the last time I was visiting here.

To my surprise, Haldir didn't say a thing about it. Instead, he just started making casual conversation with me, asking how I'd been, telling me about what I'd missed in Lórien since I'd last left...it was nice, actually. Just like old times.

We walked all day long, not arriving to where Haldir had wanted to take us until much later that evening, after the sun had gone down. By that time, Haldir had led us all up into the trees and onto a talen. We all stood in front of him as he went down the line, saying hellos to everybody.

He started with Legolas, who was at the front. _"Mae govannen, Legolas Thranduilion." _(Welcome Legolas, son of Thranduil.)

Legolas nodded back to him politely. "_Govannas v__î__n gwennen le, Haldir o L__ó__rien." _(Our Fellowship stands in your debt, Haldir of Lórien.)

Haldir then turned to Aragorn. _"A, Aragorn in Dunedain; istannen le ammen." _(Ah, Aragorn of the Dunedain; you are known to us.) He gestured to the man respectively.

"Haldir-" Aragorn started, but was cut off by a certain dwarf who stood behind him.

"So much for the legendary courtesy of the elves! Speak words we can all understand!" Gimli sneered at Haldir.

Said elf looked down on Gimli with disgust. "We have not had _dealings _with the Dwarves since the Dark Days."

"And you know what this dwarf says to that?" He then spat some rude insult at Haldir in Dwarvish, but to be honest, I was never able to decipher one syllable from the next in Gimli's language.

Haldir straightened a bit at this, but it was Aragorn who turned around and glared at the dwarf. "That was not so courteous." I bit back a retort of my own towards Gimli, choosing to shoot Haldir an apologetic look instead. He nodded back subtly to me as if to say it was fine, but I knew better than that. Haldir was probably the most prideful person I knew.

He stepped past them and came over to speak with me, but his eyes caught sight of Sam and Frodo, who stood behind me. "You bring great evil with you," he said suddenly. Then to Aragorn, he said "You can go no further."

I stared at him in shock. "Haldir!"

He spun around from where he had been walking away. "I cannot allow such danger to be brought into our realm, Erin. You of all people should understand that."

"It's not like stuff's gonna start exploding every time he takes a step!" I exclaimed. I exhaled and continued. "We need your help, Haldir. We came here for protection. Don't tell me that you'd turn such innocent people away. I know you better than that."

Haldir stared right back at me for a long while. There was no emotion evident on his face, but I could tell that he was trying to come to a decision quickly. He glanced from me to Aragorn, back to me, and the finally to Frodo again. With a sigh, he shook his head. "I am sorry, Erin. It is too great of a risk."

My jaw dropped. "What?"

Aragorn put a hand on my shoulder, and I looked over at him. "Perhaps it would help if Haldir and I discussed this alone," he said. I nodded reluctantly, watching as the two of them walked to the opposite side of the talen. Though I knew they were probably trying to stay quiet, it was easy to hear them going at each other in elvish.

I walked over to the edge of the wooden floor and sat down, letting my feet dangle over the edge. I looked over at Frodo, who looked so terribly guilty and depressed. With a sigh, I scooted over so that I was sitting next to him, taking note of the fact that many of the Fellowship members were shooting nervous and somewhat accusing glances at him. "Don't worry about it, Frodo. It's not your fault. Haldir's just being stupid."

The young hobbit looked up at me and managed a weak smile, but there wasn't a speck of joy in his blue eyes at all. "I know. I just can't help but wonder if things would be different, had Gandalf not..." He fell silent.

I nodded. "It's okay. We're all shaken by it." In an effort to comfort him, I gave him a quick one-armed hug. When he pulled away, I looked down at him with a smile. "But Gandalf wouldn't want us to grieve too much over him, now would he?"

Frodo smiled back, a bit bigger this time, and then looked away. "I suppose you're right."

"You carry a heavy burden as it is, Frodo," Boromir spoke up from a few feet away. "Don't carry the weight of the dead." Frodo seemed to think about that for awhile, and I took that as my cue to leave. I got to my feet and walked over to where Legolas was standing, staring out into the distance as usual.

"Hey," I said quietly.

He looked over at me. "Hello, Erin."

I sighed. _"Hannon le," _I said after a moment. (Thank you.)

"What for?"

"For comforting me when I needed it," I replied. "I'm sorry if I bothered you at all, and I..." I bit my lip. "...I think I overreacted a bit when I yelled at you in Moria. I know that you're just protecting me because you care, and I'm sorry for causing such a stupid argument."

"The fault is mine and mine alone," he said quickly, "but I am willing to move on and make it no more than a memory." He looked over at me, smiling. "Are you?"

I smiled back. "Yeah. More than willing."

At that moment, I noticed that the arguing had died down, and turned around to see Haldir looking at all of us. "You will follow me."

**A/N: Agh! Sorry for the short chapter. D: It's like, 2:30 AM though, and I need to go to bed. XD I was planning to take a day off of writing today, since I put out three chapters yesterday, but at the last second I decided to at least give you guys something. :) So...if this chapter sucks compared to the others, it's because a) It was written at 1 or 2 AM, and b) This is just sort of a filler chapter. I don't want to unload too much dramatic plot stuff at once. :3 **

**On the upside, I accomplished almost nothing else today! :D I watched a lot of Smosh videos (if any of you know who they are, I LOVE YOU,) and made a gun. Out of paper. XD I was so bored! And it took forever! But I've finished it now, and it looks cool. :D Don't forget to review! Thanks, you guys! **

**~Erin**


	13. Of Elves and Women

**A/N: Hey guys! So I just wanted to let you all know that apparently I made a mistake when uploading chapters, and accidentally made chapter 9 and chapter 10 the same thing. I think I fixed it, so go read chapter ten now so that you're not confused! XD And thank you to a guest under the name danira. Sorry about the confusion! Enjoy the next chapter! :D I have a feeling you will. :3**

Innocence & Instinct: Chapter Thirteen

Erin's POV

Haldir led us through the forest all through that night and the next day. I was surprised that we all made it as long as we did without resting. I was considerably happier than I was before, though, despite all the drama and stuff on my mind. It just felt good to be back in these woods again. It gave me a sense of relief. As we walked along, I wondered how long we would stay here. Would it be for as long as it was in the books, or would it be how it was in the movies, where it seemed like the Fellowship only stayed for a few days? Maybe I would have a chance to get everything cleared up before we took off again. It would be nice to continue our journey with a fresh start.

At around five in the afternoon, Haldir stopped us at the top of a large hill. Legolas stood on his left, I on his right. The blonde marchwarden smiled as we all took in the sight in front of us, and an overwhelming sense of longing overcame me as I looked forward. Off in the distance, there was a part of the land on a much bigger hill where the trees grew impossibly tall, standing out above all the rest. In the glow of the late afternoon sunlight, I could see the sparkle of the golden leaves and silver trunks already.

"Caras Galadhon," Haldir said fondly, "the heart of elvendom on earth. Realm of Lord Celeborn, and of Galadriel...Lady of Light." As the rest of the Fellowship stared at the gorgeous scenery in awe, Haldir turned to me, his smile growing. "Welcome home."

oOo

Walking towards Galadriel and Celeborn's palace was even breathtaking for me. As we followed the unseen elven paths through the sturdy mallorn trees, I relaxed and put all thoughts of drama, death, and anything else negative out of my mind.

Legolas walked beside me, and chuckled as I leaned my head back and exhaled, smiling contentedly. "I assume you are enjoying this?"

I nodded. "I'd almost forgotten how much I love this place." I brushed my fingertips across a a tree trunk as we moved past it. "It's been so long since I've been here..." Haldir continued to lead us through the woods that I knew so well. Memories of Haldir, Legolas and I causing chaos together a long time ago came flooding back to me. I remembered why I was always so happy here...because I was loved here. I felt like I belonged here, among the elves.

Eventually, after the sun had gone down and the cool night had taken its place, we arrived at the royal's tree palace. I climbed the white wooden steps, smiling to myself as I thought about how many times I must've gone up and down these things since I'd arrived in Middle-Earth. I stepped up onto the suspended platform of the talen that wove through the trees, following Haldir until we stopped at the widest one, which was at the base of their grand staircase that reached up to the main doors of Galadriel and Celeborn's home. Haldir stepped off to the side, and I stood at the front of our group, by Aragorn's side. Kaia stood on the other, but didn't say anything to me.

As soon as everyone was gathered together on the platform, the doors swung open, and a brilliant white light shone from inside as two of the most powerful elves in Middle-Earth descended the stairway gracefully, taking each other's hands. They came down under the complex and intricately designed archway, stopping on the second to last step. It was silent for a moment as Celeborn and Galadriel looked over out group. Celeborn was the one who broke that silence.

"Ten there are here, yet eleven there were that set out from Rivendell; so said the messages. Tell me, where is Gandalf? For I much desire to speak with him." The elven lord looked at me for a moment, expecting an answer. I would've spoken up, but sadness dropped on me like a weight at the wizard's name, and I dropped my gaze to the floor.

Suddenly, Galadriel spoke softly, almost disbelievingly. "He has fallen into shadow..." I looked over at Kaia, who looked crushed at the reminder.

"He was taken by both shadow and flame," I heard Legolas say from behind. "A Balrog of Morgoth...for we went needlessly into the net of Moria." I could even hear the sorrow in his voice.

Raising my head again, I looked up at Celeborn. He looked shocked by the news. I then glanced over at Haldir, who had a similar expression.

"Needless were none of the deeds in Gandalf's life," Galadriel replied. Her gaze then flicked to Gimli, who looked guilty that his people's home had caused so much pain. "Do not feel responsible for these events, Gimli, son of Gloín. In all lands, love is now mingled with grief." Her piercing blue eyes moved on to look at Boromir, who could not match it for long before he dropped his head, crying quietly.

"Then what is to be done?" Celeborn asked aloud.

"We'll keep going," I said without hesitation. I felt all eyes turn on me. I met Celeborn's gaze firmly, jaw clenched. "Gandalf wouldn't want us to give up just because we lost him. And..." I spoke a bit quieter, glancing at Kaia as I continued. "...we all knew that this quest wouldn't go victimless."

There was another brief silence, until Galadriel spoke again. "The quest stands upon the edge of a knife. Stray but a little and it will fail, to the ruin of all." I looked up, thinking that she would have directed that at me, but she was looking at Kaia instead, who was staring back at her, but with uncertainty. "Yet hope remains...while the company is true," she reminded us, looking back behind me towards Sam. "Not all is set in stone by fate or prophecies. All things determine their own destinies."

Now that last bit I knew was directed towards me. I looked up at Galadriel suddenly, wondering what she was getting at. _"Trials and troubles that you are not expecting will come your way, Erin. You must not let that deter you from your goal." _I wanted to ask what she meant by that, but she moved on. "Go now and rest, for you are weary with sorrow, and much toil. Tonight, you will sleep in piece." I looked down again, brow furrowed. _What trials and troubles? Have I...changed something?_

All of a sudden, I felt a hand on my shoulder, and looked up to see Haldir standing in front of me. "Come." He turned and walked away, and I followed after him as he led the rest of the Fellowship back down the stairs and out into the forest, walking on a very familiar path. We stopped in between two large trees, each with a rope ladder tacked into their trunks.

I looked up at the one on the right and grinned. "My talen!"

"Yes," he nodded, also smiling. "I will have your camp set up here," he then announced to the others. "You are free to either remain or explore the city as you wish." With that, he walked off again, quickly disappearing from sight. As the others plopped their stuff down on the ground and took their seats among the thick, curling roots of the trees that were crawling all over the place, I headed straight for my own tree that I used to live in, quickly scrambling up the rope ladder and stepping onto the solid wood.

Looking around, I beamed. Absolutely nothing had changed. My friend Caladhiel had done an excellent job of watching my stuff like I'd asked. I'd have to find her and thank her for that later. I ran over to my trunk of clothes, pausing to smile at my bow and quiver full of white Lothlórien handing on the wall. "Right where I left you." I then glanced over at the nightstand next to my bed, expecting to see nothing but the couple of glass bottles that held the elven perfume I'd bought at one point and a necklace or two. Those were there, but there was something else...a note. I walked over and picked it up, frowning. "Not where I left you." After opening it up and examining it a moment longer, I realized it was from Galadriel.

_Erin,_

_ I realize that you are troubled upon returning here. You carry many burdens, all of which I have seen. I must warn you, however. Above all else, you must not allow the enemy to find you. Saruman has learned of your and Kaia's arrival. He knows that one of you possesses knowledge of the outcome of this war. You must not let him find you, Erin. He is hunting you. I know that you are strong, but I fear for your safety. He will use whatever methods he must to get information out of you. You know this. Do not allow yourself to be capture by him. I wish you all the best on the remainder of your journey. _

_ Galadriel_

I lowered the paper, sudden realization hitting me. _How does he know about us? _I quickly folded the paper up and shoved it underneath the mattress of my bed. _Great. Another thing to add to my list of crap to deal with. _I sighed as I pulled a dress out of my trunk, grabbed some shoes, and ran across the branches connecting the trees together, moving quickly until I was just overtop of the bathing tents. As I slipped into an available one and greeted the maid inside, a whole new barrage of unsettling thoughts flooded my mind. Even in Lothlórien, trouble was finding me. What the heck!

oOo

Kaia's POV

I sat underneath of the big white tent that a bunch of elves had come and set up for us underneath of one of the trees, leaning back against it's trunk. Lothlórien was a nice place, from what I could tell. It was really peaceful and relaxing, despite how sad I still was on the inside. Without Gandalf, things just seemed...so different. His warm chuckle wasn't heard anymore in the camp, and I missed it terribly, along with his warm hugs. I knew I wasn't the only one feeling that way, either.

It was quiet at camp for a long while. We were all still pretty emotionally unstable. I looked up from where I'd been twirling a stick in my hands to see Erin walk back into camp, though I could've sworn I never saw her come down from the tree and leave. She was wearing a long, plain white dress that kinda glowed in the light that the elven lamps that had been strung everywhere gave off. It had long billowy sleeves and a v-neck, and her hair had been cleaned, brushed, and her hairline had somehow been twisted into a braid to pull her bangs out of her face. She walked over to the large basin of water set on a pedestal that was in the center of our camp, trailing her fingers along the surface of the water and staring into it blankly.

After about fifteen minutes, an enchanting chorus of elvish voices filled the air around us, quietly singing some random elvish song. Erin looked up when they started, but didn't give it any more acknowledgment.

We sat in silence, listening to the elves sing for a bit, when Legolas finally spoke up as he stepped back from the basin, where he had just filled a silver pitcher with water. "...A lament to Gandalf," he said, looking around at the trees above us.

"What do they say about him?" Merry asked. I realized that he had been talking about the elves singing.

Legolas turned to the hobbit that sat near me sadly. "I have not the heart to tell you. For me, the grief is still too near."

"They should add a verse about his fireworks," Sam said quietly from beside me. A moment later, he stood up, making up his own bit on the spot. "The finest rockets ever seen...they burst in stars of blue and green..." Gimli suddenly snored loudly from where he slept on the other side of the camp, and Aragorn smacked him. "Or after thunder, golden showers...came falling like a rain of flowers. Oh, that doesn't do them justice by a long road," he mumbled, sitting back down.

I smiled. "No, that was awesome! I like it. Get Legolas to translate it into elvish for you, and you've got a hit." Looking back up to the basin, I noticed that Erin wasn't there anymore. In fact, I couldn't see her anywhere at all. "Hey, where'd Erin go?"

Legolas caught my eye and pointed off into the distance. I followed his finger and caught a glimpse of her white dress slipping away into the trees.

oOo

Erin's POV

As soon as I heard the elves start singing Gandalf's Lament, I wanted so badly to slip out and go off on my own so I could sing with them. I left right before Sam started his verse about the fireworks, and within minutes I was out into the more deserted area of Lórien, singing the solo part of Gandalf's Lament that I had learned back home. _"In gwidh ristennin...I fae narchannen...I Lach Anor ed...ardhon gwannen..." _I smiled as the chorus of elves in the trees echoed their own lines between mine. I continued walking, singing sadly. _"Mithrandir, Mithrandir! A Randir Vithren!" _I saw Gandalf's face again in my mind, and remembered Kaia's stinging words that she'd yelled at me outside of Moria. _"__Ú-__reniathach...i amar galen..." _Stopping in my tracks, I looked up at the lights flickering in the sky, praying that we'd get over this fight soon enough. _"I reniad l__í__n ne m__ô__r...niuthannen..." _I fell silent, listening to the elves above sing their last notes as I blinked back tears. I hadn't come out here to cry, I'd come out here to have a moment to myself. Why was I crying?

_Because of everything, _I told myself. _Because this journey hasn't been as picture-perfect as you thought it would be. _I knew inside of me that I had to go to Kaia and fix all of this mess. Or...at least try. Nothing would get done if I just sat by and waited for something to happen.

At that thought, I lifted my head and wiped the last of my tears away. _Yes. That's exactly right. Nothing will get done if I sit back and do nothing. I came on this mission to help Frodo and have fun, not to cause all kinds of drama between me and my best friend. _I turned around and quickly started walking back the way I had come, headed for the camp. Kaia would have to listen to me. I had to try.

oOo

Kaia's POV

At this point, everyone had fallen asleep in the camp except for Legolas and I. I was still relaxing in the same spot that I had been, but Legolas was sitting on the stone steps that cut right past the tree I was currently curled up into. I peeked over the root that I was leaning my head against and saw him still there, staring at nothing. He had a look on his face like he was confused, and thinking about something intently. "Legolas?" I whispered. He either ignored me, or was too caught up in his thoughts to have heard me. I stood up, stretched my legs, and went over to the steps, walking up and sitting down next to him. "Legolas? You okay, man?" He seemed really upset about something lately. The elf nodded, but didn't say anything. I rolled my eyes. "No, seriously. What's wrong?"

Now he looked over at me. "Why are you still awake?"

"That doesn't answer my question," I said. "Come on, dude. You've been like this for almost a week. What's wrong? Did something happen?"

He sighed. "I...I do not know. I suppose I still feel guilty about hurting Erin."

"For God's sake, Legolas! That was forever ago. She forgave you, and she's healed now. Let it go."

"I know she forgave me, but...I just..." he blinked suddenly and stopped talking. "Never mind. I will be fine. It is nothing for you to worry about."

"If it involves my best friend, it's something for me to worry about," I said to him. Realizing that we weren't in the most private area to have a deep discussion like this, I got to my feet and offered him a hand. He looked at it oddly. "Want to go for a walk?" I asked. When he didn't respond, I looked at him seriously. "Legolas, you can't stay moody like this for forever. If something's wrong, then we can go off somewhere and talk about it. Maybe I can help you."

He seemed to consider that for a moment, then agreed by grabbing my hand and also standing up, straightening his silver undershirt before smiling slightly. "Where shall we go?"

oOo

Erin's POV

"Erin!"

I stopped walking and spun around at my name. Haldir was not far away, and walked up to me with a smile. "What are you doing out here? Have you gotten yourself lost again?"

I laughed. "No. I was actually headed back to my camp. I need to talk to my friend." I turned to go, but he grabbed my arm and pulled me back.

"Wait," he said, getting serious now. "Do you mind if we discuss your promise first?"

_Ahhh, there it is. _I smiled. "Sure, we can do that now." I turned to face him. It was quiet for awhile. "So...do you remember your half of the deal?"

Haldir nodded. "A year ago, you told me when you left that if you returned, and I still felt the same now as I did then...you would rethink your decision. Erin..." he said quietly, taking my hands in his. "...I can honestly say that even after all this time, my feelings for you have not changed."

I looked up at him, actually kind of surprised about that. "Really?"

"Really," he assured me. Then, in a whisper, he added "You have no idea how much I meant it when I said that I was glad to see you again."

I exhaled. "I...I realize."

"Will you keep your end of the promise?"

I looked up into Haldir's eyes. "I will." _He really does care about me, doesn't he? Even after a whole year, he hadn't forgotten me. But...can I really do this? Can I let myself court an elf like him? I just...I don't... _I glanced down for a second, then back up at him. "Haldir...I'm sorry, but I have to be blunt again. I don't love you right now, at the moment."

He nodded. "If you would allow me to speak...neither do I. I do not fall in love easily, Erin. You know that."

I laughed a bit. "I do. And I don't want it to be love. Not yet. Not until both of us are absolutely sure."

"I agree."

"It's dangerous enough for us to even be standing here together, really. I'm just afraid that your reputation might get ruined if word gets out that you're courting a mortal woman."

He smiled a bit. "Courting never did any harm to anyone."

I bit my lip. _Dang. He's right. _

oOo

Kaia's POV

"So it is about Erin?" I asked, staring at the elf with a knowing smile. We'd walked off into the woods, away from the camp, and during our walk, Legolas had confided in me that the reason he was so upset had something to do with Erin.

He nodded and smiled a bit sheepishly. "Yes. I realize that I probably should stop worrying about her and just let her fight her own battles, but..." He exhaled. "I just...I do not want to see her hurt like how she was in Moria ever again. She was on the brink of death." He shivered a bit. "I would never be able to forgive myself if she died because I failed to protect her."

"But she doesn't always need you to protect her," I reminded him. "Erin can fight well on her own. Sure, she might need your help at times, but it's not like she needs you to be her bodyguard tewnty-four seven." He shot me a confused look. "All the time," I clarified.

"I know."

I laughed. "You keep saying that, but you don't seem to be any happier."

He smiled a bit. "Well, then I guess that is not what is bothering me."

"Then what is?" I asked, exasperated. "You're almost as bad as Erin. She'll get so confused sometimes...my God. It's a wonder that that woman has a brain at all."

Legolas frowned. "Was that entirely necessary."

I laughed. "It was a joke, man! I was being sarcastic!"

"Oh. My apologies."

I smiled and shook my head, looking away and taking a couple steps forward to pick a low-hanging leaf off of a tree. "Okay, so if it's not being over protective of her that's bothering you, then what is it?" I waited for an answer, but didn't get one. I turned around. "Legolas?" He had that distant and unsure look on his face again. "You can tell me anything. I swear, I won't tell another soul."

oOo

Erin's POV

After a few minutes of silence where I was thinking, I finally sighed again. "Haldir..." The marchwarden of Lórien looked up at me. "I've made a decision. And my answer is...yes."

He did nothing for a moment, just stared down at me in shock. Then, without warning, he pulled me in and kissed me full on the lips.

I tensed, being caught off guard for a moment, but then melted into it and kissed him back. My muscles relaxed as I felt his hand gently cradling the side of my face, the other tightly gripping one of my own hands. I laid my free hand on his shoulder, surprised by how much I enjoyed the kiss. It got butterflies going in my stomach, and my fingertips tingled with pleasure.

When we finally separated, he touched his forehead to mine. "You have no idea how long I wanted to do that," he laughed, and kissed me again. I stayed quiet, kissing him back and enjoying the feeling of it, smiling through it all. I knew I'd made the right decision as we stood there in each others' arms, absolutely nothing disturbing us. For the first time since we'd come out of Moria, I felt genuinely...happy.

oOo

Kaia's POV

Legolas looked at me, still debating something in his mind. "Really? You would tell no other?"

I smiled. "Of course not. Not if you want me to keep it a secret." Still, he was quiet, and I started trying to guess what was going on with him. _Seriously, what's going on? I know that he's probably been beating himself up about the whole fight with Erin for awhile, but...really! It's not like she hates him forever. _

And then a theory that at first seemed unlikely came to mind. I thought about everything that had happened between them in Moria...or, on this journey, for that matter. How crushed he'd been when he'd hurt Erin. How I'd seen him comfort her after Gandalf's fall. How he always regretted it whenever he made her mad. _Could it be?..._ "Legolas," I said, getting his attention. No point in beating around the bush anymore. "...Do you love my best friend?"

It was dead silent for awhile, save for the rustling of the leaves overhead. It almost seemed like the forest itself was waiting on an answer.

After about three seconds of pure silence, the elf prince finally exhaled, then looked up at me seriously. "Yes."

oOo

Erin's POV

I couldn't stop smiling as Haldir and I finally started walking back to camp. This was great. Awesome. Fantastic! What in the world had ever been holding me back before? Heck if I knew. I was just glad to finally have a reason to be happy now. I had Haldir, and he had me. We were a couple. How could this possibly get any better? Now all I had to do was go find Kaia and make up with her. It was perfect. I was so happy, I couldn't help myself from just laughing quietly as we walked, hand in hand. "This is great."

Haldir looked over at me. "What is?"

"Everything," I said, smiling at him. "Us." I laughed again.

His smiled grew a bit bigger, and he tightened his grip on my hand. _"Melin ceni hin l__î__n sila i 'eladhach." _(I love to see your eyes shine when you laugh.)

I smiled and blushed at the compliment. "I can't help it. I'm now courting the best elf in all of Lórien. What more do you expect?"

He chuckled. _"Hannon le." _(Thank you.) After a moment, he then asked "How long are you planning on staying in Lothlórien?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. I'll have to ask Aragorn when he wants to leave."

"You were not planning on staying here?"

I realized what he was getting at. "Oh...well, I don't know. I'll...I'll talk to him about it sometime. Maybe they won't need me anymore." My good mood was dampened a bit at the thought of possibly leaving the Fellowship, but I brushed it aside. "We don't have to worry about that now, Haldir. I think we should just enjoy these moments while we have them."

"I suppose you are right," he said quietly. He looked over at me and smiled again.

"What?"

Haldir leaned down and kissed me again. I laughed. "You look beautiful, Erin."

"Oh, I know," I said sarcastically. "You're a lucky guy."

He laughed again and pulled me closer. "That I am."

oOo

Kaia's POV

I blinked. _Woah. How did I not see that coming? _"...Seriously?"

Legolas nodded. "Yes...I am sure of it. That is why I was so nervous about her dying. I thought...I thought I was going to lose her."

I smiled a bit. "Well, you haven't lost her. She's still alive and well. Are you going to tell her?"

He looked a bit freaked out at that idea. "...Should I?"

"Of course!" I said. "Why wouldn't you? If you love her, tell her! Don't keep something like that hidden."

"You...you do not think she would laugh at me or anything?"

I gave him a look. "Seriously? It's Erin we're talking about. The last thing she would do is laugh in your face." I nudged him in the arm. "And besides. I couldn't possibly see her denying you. After all, you've been close with her for a long time, right?" Legolas nodded, looking a bit more confident. "So what are you waiting for? Go get her! She should be back to camp by now, at least. It's getting late."

He grinned, and I saw the sparkle in his eyes that I remember seeing before at the beginning of our journey. "Thank you, Kaia. Erin is lucky to have you as a friend."

I waved it off. "Hey, it's no big deal. Now come on!" I laughed as the two of us took off running, and Legolas laughed with me. We made it back to camp in record time, and stopped just behind the tree, standing at the top of the stairs. I put a hand on his shoulder and smiled. We could already hear her laughing on the other side of the tree. "Just go in and tell her. Be honest. If you're blunt, she'll respect you a lot."

Legolas smiled and nodded. "Thank you again."

"Don't worry about me. Go get your girl," I said with a grin.

Legolas gave me one last smile, took a deep breath, and started down the stairs, quickly coming to a stop at the base of them. I frowned when he didn't go any farther, though. _Did he freeze? Is he nervous or something? _I went down to him, stopping when I heard Erin laughing again, and looked over to the middle of the camp. My jaw dropped.

There she was, in the middle of the small clearing, lips on Haldir's. _What the HELL? _I looked over at Legolas, who looked absolutely crushed. _Oh, no..._I put a hand on his shoulder, and he looked at me. "Dude...I'm sorry," I whispered. "I didn't-"

"Kaia? Legolas?"

I looked up and took my hand off of him, smiling at Erin and faking it as best as I could. "Hey there! When did this happen?"

She smiled a bit and blushed. "Not long ago." Erin then turned to her new boyfriend and kissed him quickly. "Good night, Haldir."

He smiled back down at her. "_M__á__ra mesta," _he whispered. He let go of Erin, nodded politely to Legolas and I, and then quickly left the camp.

As Erin watched him go, I looked back at Legolas. He looked like a puppy that had just been kicked, but his expression instantly changed to fake happiness as soon as Erin turned around. "I am happy for you," he said quietly.

Erin smiled. "Thanks. Where did you two come from?"

"Just out walking," I said. "I was alone, but ran into him on the way back."

"I was also out on my own. It has been a trying day for us all."

Erin nodded. "I'll say." She then yawned. "Gosh, what time is it? I'm so tired..."

I shrugged. "I don't know. Probably past midnight."

"Oh, crap. Hopefully we're not expected to get up too early tomorrow," she said. "I'm gonna go to bed. Night, guys."

"Goodnight," we both called back. I waited until I saw her slim figure disappear into her little tree house, then grabbed Legolas' arm and dragged him away so that we were out of hearing range of the camp. "Legolas, I'm so sorry-"

"It is not your fault," he said. "If she has found another...then I suppose I must do so as well."

I gave him a sympathetic look. "Legolas...don't give up on her just yet. You can't! Why don't you just wait awhile and see what happens. Maybe it's just a phase." Even I couldn't convince myself of that last bit, but hey. It was worth a shot.

Legolas looked over in the direction of her talen. "...All right. I will wait patiently, but you must swear that you will tell no one. The last thing I want is to come between her and Haldir, if he is the one who makes her truly happy."

_Goddamn it, why are you so sweet to her? Why couldn't you get there first? _"I promise."

"Thank you," he whispered before running back over to our campsite. I followed him, and from there we both went to our respective beds, though I doubt either of us fell asleep right away.

"Dear God," I whispered to myself, "can't we have one thing go smoothly around here?"


	14. Secrets of the Mirror

**A/N: Aaaaaand...we officially have a love triangle going on! ;D Yay! Before we start this chapter, I figured I'd answer two quick questions that popped up in the reviews for the last one. **

**To a guest going by the name LOTR Geek (that's an epic name XD): This story is following the plot of the extended edition movies, but I might throw a couple references to the books in somewhere. ;) **

**And to dandapanda: I can confirm that Kaia and Legolas do not become a couple. Kaia will remain single throughout the story, actually, and for two reasons. 1) Real-life Kaia has no interest whatsoever in having a relationship. 2) I don't want both of them to have love interests, because I feel like pairing both of them up with someone would be too cliché. Almost every time I read a LotR fanfic where girls get thrown in to Middle-Earth, they all get paired up with someone. I want to make this story as different as I possibly can from all the others. :)**

**Whew! Long Author's Note, huh? Alright, alright, here's your story. Enjoy!**

Innocence & Instinct: Chapter Fourteen

Kaia's POV

"Kaia? Kaia! Are you awake?"

"If she's not answering you, Pippin, then obviously she's not awake."

I opened my eyes slightly to see none other than Pippin and Merry standing overtop of me. "Well, I'm awake now. Thanks for that."

Pippin grinned. "Oh, good! Aragorn wanted me to tell you that breakfast will soon be ready."

I still groaned and let my eyelids droop closed, wanting to go back to sleep. "I'll eat later. Go away."

"He said you'd say that. That's why he told me to mention that there'd be plenty of fresh fruit and bacon."

Just like that, I was sitting up and pulling myself out of my little hammock that had been made up for me. "God, that guy knows way too many of my weaknesses," I mumbled, running a hand through my hair and stretching like a cat before heading over to the group of bodies sitting in the clearing not too far away. Each person had a silver tray of their own that was covered in food. True to his word, Aragorn lifted up the plate of bacon as soon as I was within reach, and I snatched a piece off, gobbling it up before grabbing a plate of my own and plopping down next to him. "So what are we doing today? Dear God, this is good bacon." I loaded up my plate with some more, also grabbing a handful of some big, ripe berries that were in a bowl, and an apple as well.

"Whatever you wish," Aragorn said calmly. "We are to remain here in Lothlórien for a few weeks, at the least. You are free to do whatever you want until then."

"Cool." I then noticed that we were minus one female party member. "Where's Erin at?"

"She went off somewhere with Haldir awhile ago," Sam said.

I remembered the events of last night, and nodded, secretly glancing Legolas' way when no one was looking. He was hiding his emotions well, but I could tell that he was still really bummed out about Erin and Haldir being together. There was a random moment of silence, until I broke it. "So...anyone have any major plans for the day?"

"Merry and I are going to play some more hide-and-seek later," Pippin said. "You can come too, if you'd like."

I smiled and shook my head. "No thanks. I feel like I'd fail miserably like I did last time."

"I was planning on going to see the river Nimrodel in a bit, Kaia," Legolas said. "Frodo and Sam wanted to go with me. Would you like to come as well?"

I thought about that. "Sure! It's not like I have anything else planned." I quickly finished my breakfast and then stood up. "Let me change into something else quick before we go." I ran back to my bag of stuff, digging through it until I found the set of spare clothes that I'd brought along. It hadn't dawned on me until then that I was still wearing my clothes that were stained with Orc blood and smelled like a dead animal from all the sweating I'd been doing. I grabbed my other outfit out of my bag and ran back to the guys. "Is there a place where I can take a bath around here?"

Aragorn nodded and pointed over to my right. "Head in that direction. After about five minutes, you will see a series of white tents in a large clearing. Find one that is unoccupied, and an elleth will be there to help you get cleaned up."

_Oh God, that's gonna be awkward. _I smiled anyway and took off in that general direction. Sure enough, the bathing tents were right there, and I slipped inside of one, eager to feel clean again. About half an hour later, I stepped out in a light grey tunic with deep magenta accents on the sleeve cuffs and matching belt, dark grey leggings, and black sandals. For once, I had decided to let my curly hair hang loose, and was shocked to find how long it had gotten through traveling. It almost reached down to my butt now. _Huh, _I thought as I walked back to camp, playing with a lock of it. _Guess I just never noticed it growing while we were traveling._

Once I made it back to camp (I had left my old clothes with the elf lady to be washed), I found Legolas, Sam, and Frodo waiting for me. The blonde elf smiled as I walked up. "Are you ready to leave?"

I nodded, and we took off. "Is it far away?" I asked as we moved away from the campsite.

"I do not think so," he said. "We should be able to return to camp by lunchtime, if we move swiftly."

"Okay," I said. My mind suddenly shifted to Erin. _I wonder where she is right now...and if she's still pissed at me._

oOo

Erin's POV

"There!" I said, smiling as I adjusted the crown of golden elanor flowers on his head. "It looks perfect!" I laughed as he rolled his eyes and removed it. "King Haldir!"

He chuckled and placed it on my head. "It looks much better on you."

I laughed, running my fingers over the delicate, hand-woven wreath of flowers that I had made. I reached down and plucked one of the last remaining flowers that were in our immediate area out of the ground, twirling the stem in my fingers. "Thanks. I guess it does match me today, doesn't it?" I was wearing a simple, sleeveless dress that was pale yellow with a thin belt of pearls and silver strung around the hips. Sighing contentedly, I leaned back against the tree behind us and snuggled into Haldir's chest. "You know, I don't think I've ever had a completely bad day in these woods. I would absolutely love to stay here forever."

"I would love that also," he said softly. "I hate the thought of sending you off into the middle of this raging war, but I do understand if your heart calls you to be with the Fellowship. Especially considering the fact that your friend is traveling with you."

I smiled a bit, but it faded. "I never did apologize to her..."

Haldir frowned. "Whatever for?"

Sighing, I dropped the flower. "When Gandalf died, Kaia got upset because she was close to him. She...she was angry with me for not letting her go out and help him, but it was too dangerous." And that was the truth...or...part of it, anyway. "And then she said not to talk to me anymore."

"I am sorry if I distracted you from talking with her, Erin," Haldir said automatically. "Would you like to go back to camp to speak with her?"

I shook my head. "No, it's fine. I'll have plenty of other chances. After all, we're gonna be here for a couple of weeks." It suddenly dawned on me that Haldir still didn't know about me coming from Earth and all that. _Crap...if he's my boyfriend now, I guess I should tell him..._

"That is true," he said, interrupting my thoughts. After a few seconds of silence, he leaned down and kissed my head.

I looked up at him, smiling. "What was that for?"

"You looked worried," he said simply. Then, dropping his voice to a whisper, he continued. "Do not be, Erin. It is not worth the stress."

"I know," I said. We sat in silence for awhile, simply enjoying each other's company. My thoughts were now on future events, specifically Parth Galen and the death of Boromir. _Should I try and save him? No...no, I can't. He has to be dead in order for all the stuff with Denethor and Faramir to happen. Where am I gonna go after the Fellowship splits, though? I don't really want to have to sit through Treebeard's ramblings...that'll bore me out of my mind. And I sure as heck don't want to have to put up with Gollum, either. I'd probably strangle him before we even made it out of the Emyn Muil. I guess that means I'm gonna join the Three Hunters later...Frick, that means running. _

"Erin?" Haldir's voice pulled me out of my thoughts.

"Yeah?"

"You're worrying again," he scolded. "Stop it."

"Sorry," I said. "I've just got a lot to think about. You know that."

He smiled. "The whole purpose of you being here is to have a chance to relax. I suggest you take advantage of it."

I finally gave up, turning to him again as he gently kissed me. "If it'll make you happy, then I will."

oOo

Kaia's POV

As we finally came in sight of the Nimrodel, I smiled. "Dude...that's so pretty!" The water was absolutely crystal-clear, and there were a series of short, small waterfalls in it as it flowed down the hillside of Caras Galadhon. Frodo and Sam wasted no time in running up to its bank and dipping their furry feet in, and I did the same. Legolas also joined us, removing his boots.

"Are you enjoying it here, Kaia?" Sam asked.

"Heck yeah I am!" I said. "It's so nice here!" I swung my feet back and forth in the water, enjoying the cool liquid wash over my skin.

Legolas nodded beside me. "It is a wonderful place to refresh yourself. There are tales that say the water is healing to the weary."

"Really? Dang. I would've brought something to go swimming in if I'd known that." He laughed.

"I'd like to wade in at least a little further," Frodo spoke up. "It feels nice, even in winter."

I nodded. "Amen to that. I'll come with you." Legolas and Sam also agreed to follow us. Together, the four of us got back on our feet and walked off to find a part of the river that was shallower so that we could walk into it. Not too far away from where we'd been previously, Legolas found a good spot that was almost beach-like in the way that the water lapped up at my toes when I stood on the gravelly bank. Frodo and I both walked out until he was about knee-deep in the water, and we stood there quietly for awhile as Sam and Legolas stayed in the shallower areas behind us. "Well...this is nice."

Frodo nodded. "Very." I looked down at him, and he still had a slightly sad expression on his face. He'd been that way for several days now, I noticed.

"You miss Gandalf, don't you?" I asked him.

He looked up at me, a bit shocked by the sudden question, but nodded nonetheless. "Yes. I feel so alone now..." he said quietly.

I pitied Frodo. Here he was, having to carry this evil ring all on his own, and now one of his closest friends had died. "I know how you feel. Gandalf and I were pretty close, too. He probably wouldn't want us to be so sad about him, though."

Frodo smiled a bit. "That's exactly what Erin said."

_Erin..._ By this point, I wasn't even mad at her anymore. I felt really bad for what I'd said "Yeah...I could see her saying that." I looked back down at Frodo. _He does look really lost and unsure of what to do. I wish I could help him._

_ "You can..." _I almost flinched at the sound of the Ring's hissing voice. _"He cannot carry such a heavy burden alone. Offer to carry it for him...he would be grateful...and then you could have the immortality that you so desperately need..."_

_ "I don't need it," _I argued in my mind. _"We'll all be perfectly fine on our own."_

_ "And how did that go in the mines, when your beloved wizard fell? You could have saved him...it would have been no danger at all to you...That is, if you had been immortal..." _

I glanced down at his neck. Even now, I could see the Ring hanging from its chain, almost completely hidden in his shirt. It was so close..._ "No!" _I spat in my head. _"No, I see what you're trying to do! I won't take it from him! You're a liar!"_

_ "Am I?" _the Ring asked with an amused tone. _"Did I not warn you that your friend would betray you? That she was keeping secrets from you?"_

_ "That wasn't her fault," _I shot back. _"Erin had her reasons."_

_ "And yet she has still failed to tell you those reasons, has she not?" _I had no response to that. _"I will not lie to you, Kaia..." _It was quiet for a moment, until it spoke again, and this time, it definitely caught my interest. _"...I will say this only once, Kaia...Very soon, you will have the opportunity to take me for your own...without anyone noticing...do not let it pass you by. It would be wise, child...oh, so very wise...to heed my words. It will be your only chance...do not waste it..."_

The Ring finally shut up, its evil presence fading from my mind. I looked down at it again, hanging there. Almost like it was taunting me...or calling me...Calling me to take it...Now that I thought about it, how bad could it be? I was stronger than Frodo anyway...It's not like he needed the thing...

"Kaia! Frodo!" I jumped a bit and turned around to see Legolas calling to us from the shore. "We must go now if we are to make it back to the camp by noon!"

"We're coming!" Frodo called back. He turned around, looking at me before he started walking back. "Kaia?"

I blinked again. "Yeah?"

"Come on."

"Oh. Right." I followed him back to where Legolas and Sam were waiting on the shore, then quickly picked up the pace as the elf started leading us back towards the camp.

oOo

The next several days were pretty quiet after that. Not a lot of major drama. Erin and I made up, and agreed to put the whole thing behind us. She flip-flopped between spending time with both Haldir and the rest of us, and Legolas did a wonderful job of acting completely normal. For awhile, it seemed like all the drama had actually died down.

About a week after we first arrived in Lothlórien, I woke up in the middle of the night, breathing hard and sweating. I instantly shot upright in my hammock, causing it to sway a little, and when I finally calmed down, I leaned my elbows on my knees. Head in my hands, I sighed shakily. The dreams about the Ring were getting worse. Much, much worse. It seemed like they happened almost every night at this point, and I was honestly considering not sleeping as much by now. Not because it scared me, just...

...I could feel my resolve weakening.

I knew the Ring was just trying to mess with me, and I knew that all it spouted was lies, but...whenever its presence was in my head like that, it just...it seemed to make so much sense. I felt like I desperately needed that thing on my finger. It was like an intense craving. I didn't want to hurt Frodo. That was the last thing I came here for, but it was getting to the point where I couldn't ignore the damn thing any longer.

I sighed again and leaned back in my hammock. I just...I couldn't do it. Something was gonna happen sooner or later, and it would get to the point where I wouldn't be able to handle the pressure any more. I didn't know what to do about it, either. It's not like I could tell anyone...I'd be shunned. People would start avoiding me, like I was some sort of psycho. The only person I could consider telling was Erin...but I felt like even she wouldn't be able to help me at all.

I sat there in my hammock for awhile, and was just about to try and go back to sleep, when suddenly some sort of presence came and made me sit back up. I felt the strange and overwhelming urge to follow it, so...I did. I crawled out of bed and let my feet guide me, heading up the steps and off into the forest. I had no idea where I was going...I didn't even know where I would stop.

Eventually, I descended some stone steps and walked into some sort of glade in the middle of the wilderness. There was an old, weather-beaten stone archway just off to my left, and right in front of me, a wide stone pedestal with intricate carvings on its sides, and a big silver bowl set in its center. Even farther right, there was a fountain that was built right out of the tree and quietly gushing water. A figure clothed completely in white stood next to the fountain, and I recognized her as Galadriel, the lady that had entered my mind when we first came to Lothlórien.

"Why am I here?" I asked warily.

"To learn your fate," she said mysteriously. I shot her an odd look, and she spoke again. "Will you look into the mirror?" She gestured to the bowl, which was currently empty.

I hesitated for a moment before I answered. "...Why? What will I see?"

"Things that were..." she reached back and picked up a silver vase from the edge of the fountain. "Things that are..." She dipped the vase into the pool of water and began to fill it. "And some things...that have not yet come to pass." Removing the vase of water from the pool, she walked up to the bowl. "You have a destiny here, Kaia. A task...that only you can fulfill. It is why you were brought here."

_So...past, present, and future. Got it. _"And I'm assuming that this 'task to fulfill' will be shown in this...mirror?" I looked questioningly at the bowl as Galadriel started pouring the water into it.

She nodded. "If you choose to look into the Mirror...you will gain knowledge. But I will warn you of this. What is seen in the Mirror...cannot be unseen." She finished pouring the water into the bowl and watched me as she stepped back.

I met her gaze for a moment, unsure of what to do. After a few seconds, I hesitantly stepped up to the Mirror and bent over it, looking down to see my reflection staring back at me. _Show me my fate..._

With that, the water swirled, and the images began to appear.

oOo

Erin's POV

I sat on the edge of my bed, finishing up a doodle of Haldir and I skipping through a meadow. I set down what was supposed to be Middle-Earth's version of a pencil (which was really just a stick of lead) and looked at the paper, smiling. I had been up for longer than I should've, because it was probably like...two in the morning at this point. I'd just kind of randomly woken up in the middle of the night, and hadn't been able to go back to sleep. I'd seen Kaia get up and wander off somewhere, but I assumed she just had to go to the bathroom or something.

I set the drawing down on my nightstand underneath a perfume bottle. _I'll have to show it to him tomorrow. He'll love it. _I smiled to myself again and stretched out on my bed, sighing. Already a week had gone by in Lórien, but to me it didn't feel like more than a day. So much had happened in such a short time...it was so weird.

The subject of Parth Galen came to my mind again. I had pretty much already decided by now that I was gonna go with Legolas, Aragorn, and Gimli, but...what about Kaia? I guess I'd kind of assumed that she'd follow Aragorn wherever he went, but I wasn't positive. I shuddered at the thought of one of us getting captured by the Uruk-Hai. The last place I wanted to be was within the hands of a bunch of freaky Orc-Goblin crossbreeds...who would probably not be very intimidated by a couple of women at all. I was positive that Saruman would want us to be captured along with the hobbits.

And there was something else that had worried me. I'd noticed that Kaia had been acting a bit strange lately. I rolled onto my side. She seemed...nervous whenever she was around Frodo. Tense, even. I seriously hoped she wasn't gonna pull a Boromir and start attacking him to get the Ring, because honestly...I don't think I could stop her if she went into that kind of rage mode. She was a lot stronger than little old me, with my 0% upper body strength.

I sighed again and rolled over onto my stomach. Whatever. I still had three weeks to figure out that kind of stuff. For now...I just wanted to sleep.

oOo

Kaia's POV

I stepped back from the mirror, wide-eyed, both shocked and confused by what I had just seen. "What...What the hell was that?"

"Your fate," Galadriel answered simply. She stayed dead serious as she looked at me. "You must complete this task that has been given to you, Kaia."

"But...but I don't even understand what I just saw too well!" I said.

Galadriel came closer to me. "But you know what you must do."

I had to agree with her there. "I...I do, but-"

"You must stay with him, Kaia. Protect him at all times. If you do not..." She didn't have to finish for me to know what she was thinking.

I thought for a second. "...What I just saw...is that the order those events happen in?"

"No," Galadriel said. "They are merely signs. You will know when the time comes."

I stared at the ground for a minute, unsure of what to do. Finally, I straightened up. "Okay. I'll do it. I'll protect him. If I'm the one that's gotta do it, then...then I will."

She smiled at me. "You are a strong woman with a good heart. Do not let anyone ever tell you otherwise," she said. Stepping back, she then nodded. "You may return to your companions and rest."

I nodded. "Thanks." As I headed back the way that I'd come, a million thoughts were running through my head. "...Dear God. What have I gotten myself into now?

**A/N: Sorry for being cruel, you guys, but what Kaia sees has to stay under wraps. :3 The next chapter will be their final days/hours in Lothlórien, so stay tuned for that! :D Dang, I can't believe this book is coming to an end so quickly! I'm excited for the third one, which will (of course) follow the storyline of _The Two Towers. _Thank you all in advance for reading and reviewing! They make my day! :D**


	15. On to a New Adventure

Innocence & Instinct: Chapter Fifteen

Kaia's POV

I plopped down next to Erin on the ground, who had a sad look on her face. "What's wrong?"

She looked over at me. "I don't want to leave, Kaia."

At that, I sighed. "...I don't think any of us do," I said quietly. Aragorn had announced that morning that today was our last day in Lórien. We were supposed to leave tomorrow morning. I knew Erin in particular had her reasons for not wanting to leave, but I felt just as sad about it as the next person. These woods were gorgeous, and it had been so nice being able to just relax and have fun for the past few weeks, without having to worry about this big, terrible quest we were on. It was almost like vacation, in a sense. "I guess that means you're coming with us, then?" Erin and I had talked for a little bit the other day about whether or not she wanted to stay behind and chill here with Haldir.

"I have to go with you," she said. "I chose to go on this adventure in the first place, so I have to go the whole nine yards. And of course, I couldn't let you go off and have all the fun without me," she said with a smile.

I laughed. "Oh yeah. Walking nonstop for days and occasionally fighting Orcs is super fun, lemme tell ya."

She grinned also, and then stood up. "Well, I guess I'd better start saying my goodbyes and getting my stuff together." Erin started to walk off, but I stopped her.

"Hey, Erin?"

"What?"

I paused, trying to phrase my question correctly. "Do...doesn't the Fellowship split up soon? I sorta remember that in the movies."

She sighed. "I can't tell you anything, Kaia. I'm sorry...I just can't risk one of the others overhearing and finding out. It could ruin the plot."

I nodded. "I figured you'd say that, but thought I'd ask anyway. Oh, well. Not knowing isn't gonna kill me," I smiled.

"Right. See ya," Erin said before wandering over to help Aragorn and Boromir put the tent that we'd been sleeping under away.

I watched her go, and then looked away. I remembered that someone in the Fellowship died in the first movie besides Gandalf...but for the life of me, I couldn't remember who. "Shit...that's gonna bug me so much," I groaned.

After a couple minutes of trying to figure out who it was, Sam walked over. "Kaia, could you come help Merry and I fold up all of our blankets and such that are still laying about?"

I nodded and hopped to my feet. "Sure!" I followed the chubby hobbit over, still thinking about the events to come. _Whatever. As long as it's not him, then we're good._

oOo

_The next day..._

Each member of our Fellowship stood in a straight line, starting with Legolas, then Merry, Pippin, Boromir, Sam, Frodo, Gimli, Erin, me, and Aragorn at the end. We said nothing as a group of elves came down and stood in front of us, holding a brand new elvish cloak for each of us in their hands. All at once, they stepped forward, draping the surprisingly lightweight fabric over our backs and fastening them around our necks with a small pin that was in the shape of three emerald green leaves with silver detailing. I bowed my head to the lady that had done mine in thanks as Lord Celeborn spoke.

"Never before have we clad strangers in the garb of our own people," he said. I glanced at Erin, who stood next to me. Haldir, of course, had done hers, and they looked at each other fondly before he stepped back with the others. "May these cloaks help shield you from unfriendly eyes." With that, they all left, leaving two lone elleths in their place.

Galadriel stepped forward, along with her servant that carried a gift for each of us. Starting at the head of the line, her maid handed something to Legolas. "My gift for you, Legolas, is a bow of the Galadhrim, worthy of the skill of our woodland kin." Legolas accepted it eagerly, eyes sparkling as he tested it out.

Next, she went to Merry and Pippin, presenting them both with a belt that had a small knife attached to them. "These are the daggers of the Noldorim. They have already seen service in war." Merry also looked pleased, but Pippin looked up at the lady uncertainly, to which she smiled down at him. "Do not worry, young Peregrin Took. You will find your courage."

Boromir was next. Galadriel extended her hand to him, holding out a beautiful golden belt with a special holding place for his horn that he always carried around. "A golden belt...for Gondor's finest captain," she smiled. Boromir took it and was silent, nodding his thanks as he put it on.

"And for you, Samwise Gamgee," she continued, "elven rope, made of _heathlain."_

Sam, ever the gentleman (gentlehobbit?) nodded and bowed a bit. "Thank you, milady..." But then he looked over at Merry and Pippin wistfully. "...Have you run out of those nice, shiny daggers?"

Galadriel raised an eyebrow a bit, but said nothing as she moved on. When she reached Frodo, she produced from within her own robes a small glass vial that was in the shape of a teardrop. It seemed to only be filled with water, but I saw it sparkle in an odd way as she handed it to him. "Farewell, Frodo Baggins. I give you the light of Ëarendíl, our most beloved star. May it be a light for you in dark places, when all other lights...go out." She bent down and kissed his head gently before stepping to the side, now standing in front of Gimli.

"And what gift would a dwarf ask of the elves?" she said kindly.

Apparently, Gimli had warmed up to her in the past couple of weeks. "Nothing," he said with a quick shake of the head. "...Except to look upon the Lady of the Galadhrim one last time, for she is more fair than all the jewels beneath the earth."

Galadriel laughed at this, flattered by the compliment. Gimli, now embarrassed, turned to leave, but at the last second, turned back. "Actually, there was one thing, eh..." He stuttered, unsure how to ask for his gift. Finally, he pulled himself together. "...A golden hair from your head...if it is not too bold to ask."

She smiled again. "It is most certainly not too bold." With that, she reached up and pulled not one, but three strands of her hair for the dwarf, who by now was blushing furiously. He accepted the gift, carefully tucking it away before he walked off. Everyone who had gotten their gifts had since left the area to go finish the last-minute preparations.

By now, Galadriel had stopped in front of Erin. "I can give you no gift that will comfort you enough of your departure," she said solemnly.

Erin nodded. "As always, it's been a pleasure to stay here. I don't deserve the generosity that you give me at all."

Galadriel smiled knowingly at Erin, before taking a brand new elvish sword from her handmaid and presenting it to my friend. "Then at least allow me to offer you this...the sword that at one time belonged to my own daughter, Celebrían." It was a beautiful sword, one that was long and only slightly curved, with silver laid into the handle. On the blade itself, there was something written in elvish, and the text glowed brightly in the sunlight.

Erin stared at it in awe, translating the script out loud. "Fear not, child of light, for even in the darkest times...there is always hope." She looked back at Galadriel. "It's a wonderful sword."

She nodded. "The phrase itself is written in mithril that has been infused into the blade. It can never be broken nor splintered."

"I'll treasure it forever," she said, smiling slightly before sliding it into her sheath and slipping off.

Now it was my turn. "You have also lost your weapons in battle, I am told," Galadriel said to me.

I nodded. "Yeah. I got rid of the other blade...it was dull, anyway."

"And that is why I have chosen to give you these." Galadriel took the last item from her servant's hands and held them out to me. "Twin blades, made of black metal."

My eyes bugged at the sight of them. It was like they were made specifically for me. They looked almost exactly like two katanas, but everything, both blade and handle, was one hundred percent black, and still the blades were pure metal, glinting in the sunlight as I pulled them out of their – you guessed it – black sheaths. "Holy God..." I muttered as I took them into my own hands.

"Even I do not know of their origin, for they were found in our forest many centuries ago. They have been remade for you, Kaia."

"Thank you," I said before attaching them to my own belt. "Thank you so much." I turned and walked away, stopping to help Legolas load some stuff into one of the boats, which Merry and Pippin were currently sitting in. The boats were a soft white, of simple design, and came with one oar each that had a leaf-like face.

Legolas reached into one of the bags and smiled as he pulled out a wafer of a flaky bread. "Lembas!" he said to us. "Elvish waybread." He took a tiny nibble off of the corner. "One small bite is enough to fill the stomach of a grown man."

I pulled out my own wafer of the stuff, eying it before putting it back in the bag. "Cool. That'll definitely last us awhile." I set the last bag down in the boat, overhearing Merry ask Pippin how many he ate.

"Four," Pippin replied with a burp.

I laughed. "What the hell, Pip."

"Sorry," he said, offering a cheeky smile.

Once the boats were loaded, I looked around, noticing that we were missing two people. "Where's Aragorn and Erin at?"

"Aragorn went to speak in private with Lord Celeborn," Legolas said, "and Erin is over there." He pointed behind me, and I turned around to see Erin standing with Haldir on top of a small hill in the distance.

oOo

Erin's POV

Neither of us knew what to say for a few moments. "Haldir..." I finally whispered, trying not to get all choked up. I looked up into his brown eyes and saw my own sadness reflected in them. "...I want you to know that the moments I spent with you were some of them best I've ever experienced." I took a shaky breath.

He nodded. "I loved every minute that I spent with you...I only wish that it did not have to end so soon." His voice shook the tiniest bit at the end, and he looked down.

"It doesn't," I said softly, cupping his face with my hand. "I will never forget you, Haldir." I leaned in and kissed him gently.

"Erin..." He pulled away and pulled something out of his pocket. I looked down to see a beautiful pendant with the charm of the symbol of the Galadhrim on it. It was a circle of silver with a twisted circular frame around it that had a single four-pointed star in the center. "I want you to have this...as a parting gift."

That did it. Tears blurred my vision, and I took it, delicately pulling it over my head and letting it fall down overtop of my shirt, resting just underneath my chest. "Haldir...I love it. Thank you." I pulled him into a tight hug, and he returned it, neither of us letting go for some time...relishing the last moments we had together.

After a few moments, I finally heard Kaia shout my name. "Erin! Come on, we're leaving!"

I sighed and pulled away, kissing him one last time. _"N-Namari__ë__, Haldir." _(Farewell, Haldir.)

He looked at me sadly, his arm still wrapped around my waist. _"Namari__ë__, _Erin.Be safe." He finally let me go, and I nodded, turning and running off down towards the boats as I wiped tears off of my face. _God, why am I so emotional? I'll see him again at Helm's Deep...eventually._

I quickly arrived at the boats and climbed into the one that I was sharing with Kaia and Legolas. Gimli had been squeezed into the boat with Boromir, Merry, and Pippin up ahead. Getting into a comfortable position in the small elven boat, I held the charm of the necklace in my hand, staring at it until Legolas sat in front of me and the boats were pushed off. We were the second boat to go, and I turned around a bit, looking back to land and finding Haldir standing along the coastline with Celeborn and a few other elves that were seeing us off. My eyes stayed locked on his as we moved along, watching him even through the thin branches of a few trees until I couldn't see him any longer.

I faced forwards again, staring down at my necklace sadly. Never in my life had I thought leaving it all would be this hard. It wasn't even a comfort to me that he would be at Helm's Deep, I suddenly realized, because he was supposed to die there. I shuddered at the thought, but suddenly, something stirred inside of me. _No. I won't let him die there. I can't. Haldir has to make it through that battle._

"Erin?" I snapped out of my daze to see Legolas looking back at me over his shoulder, and his eyes fell down to my necklace. "Did Haldir give that to you?"

"Yes," I said quietly. "To remember him by."

He smiled a tiny bit. "It is beautiful." He turned back around and focused on rowing us through the clear water.

I said nothing, jut looked back down at it for a moment before letting it fall back onto my shirt. I turned around a bit to see if I could get one last glance back at the docks, but it was obscured by lots of trees. _I will see you again, _I said to myself before turning back around in our boat and staring ahead at the territory we had yet to explore.

**A/N: Sorry for the short chapter. Oh! And just as a side note that I forgot to throw in there, Erin took her bow and quiver with her when they left Lothlórien, so now she doesn't have to steal Legolas' anymore. :D **


	16. Row, Row, Row, Your Boat

**A/N: I'm gonna do another round of review responses real quick before I get to this chapter. :D**

**Yuki-chan: I can't tell you that yet! ;) You'll just have to wait until the next book and see...mwahahahaha!**

**InkWielder: (On Ch. 14) Ohnoes! D: I'm sorry, but you're just gonna have to go insane, then! XD That won't be revealed for a loooooooooong time. (On Ch. 15) I laughed so hard when I pictured the girls fighting with sticks. Little, skinny twigs. XD Hahaha! And I'm sorry, I know the last chapter was short. D: I'll try and make this one longer.**

**LOTR Geek: (On Ch. 14) Can I just say I love you for giving me so many cookies? :3 And I hope you do get an account, so you can write a Lord of the Rings fic! That way I can read it and give you some cookies, too! :D Lol!**

**On with the story! :)**

Innocence & Instinct: Chapter Sixteen

Kaia's POV

Traveling down the Anduin _sucked._

Normally, I'd enjoy a boat ride to give me a break from all the walking, but I'd been cramped up in this damn thing for what seemed like forever. We only stopped about three times each day for potty breaks and to stretch our legs, but it wasn't enough. I was so tired of sitting and staring at the blue-green water. I wanted to get out and go run somewhere...maybe kill something to help let my energy out.

One afternoon, while I was in the middle of my silent complaining, I heard Legolas mutter something under his breath. I turned around and looked at the blonde, who was staring intently at the tree-covered shore as he rowed along. "What's wrong?"

His gaze flicked briefly to me, then back to land. "We are being followed," he said quietly. "Something is traveling by land...a dark presence..." His brow furrowed. "But I cannot name it. It is foreign to me."

Now I looked over across the water, trying to see what he was seeing. "Will they catch us?"

"I cannot say."

All of a sudden, there was an odd screeching noise came from the forest around us. And it definitely wasn't any animal noise that I'd heard before. We both looked around, even Erin. She had been resting, but the loud noise had woken her up. "What's going on?" she mumbled.

"Something's following us," I told her. The noise rang through the air again, and Erin sat up instantly. "Do you know what it is?"

She looked at me and shook her head, but not because she couldn't identify the enemy. I got the message and turned to Legolas again. "How much longer before we stop again?"

"I do not know," he said, "but I would assume that it would be soon."

"Hopefully," Erin said from behind him, stretching out as best as she could in the confined space. "I'm sick of being in a boat."

"I'm pretty sure we all are," I said. Legolas chuckled, and I realized that he'd been rowing for quite awhile at this point. "Hey, you want to take a break? I'll row for a bit."

He smiled and nodded, handing me the oar. "Thank you."

"No problem." I turned forward again and dipped it into the water, propelling us along as the boat glided through the clear water.

"Sooo," Erin started, and I rolled my eyes at the question that I knew would follow. "How's life?"

Legolas laughed. "It could be better, as we have been doing nothing but sit in this boat for several days."

"Hey, it could be worse," Erin replied. "We could all be dead."

"I suppose that is one way to think about it," he replied thoughtfully.

There was another long silence, until Erin broke it with another completely random question. "...What would you do if I pushed you out of the boat right now?"

Legolas laughed again. "I would hate you forever," he said sarcastically.

"No you wouldn't," Erin said, and I could tell that she was smiling, too. "I'm too awesome for you to hate me."

I scoffed. "Look who's being modest over here."

"Shut up," was her incredible response. All three of us laughed, and I was glad to be sharing a boat with these two. Everyone else was awesome, don't get me wrong (except Boromir, he was still a dick), but Erin and Legolas were more entertaining. "Hey guys, guess what?"

Legolas and I both turned around to look at her. "Yeah?" I asked.

She got a devious grin on her face. "The Game."

I clenched my fists and tried to punch her, but failed miserably. "Fuck you!" I shouted at her.

What surprised me more was how Legolas reacted. He also glared at her. "Was that really necessary?"

"Yes. Yes it was," Erin said, laughing to herself.

"Troll!" I shouted, then turned to Legolas. "Wait, how do you know about that?"

"Erin told me about it once. She also explained to me another thing that was popular in your old world...some infernal song, but I cannot remember the name of it."

"Wait..." I said, grinning a bit. "You don't mean..."

"Yes!" Erin exclaimed suddenly. We both looked at each other, then back at Legolas, and then finally proceeded to belt the dreaded song together. "NEVER GONNA GIVE YOU UP!"

"NEVER GONNA LET YOU DOWN!" I continued. Legolas looked horrified.

"NEVER GONNA RUN AROUND AND DESERT YOUUU!"

"NEVER GONNA MAKE YOU CRY!"

"NEVER GONNA SAY GOODBYE!"

We finished the last line as one. "NEVER GONNA TELL A LIE AND HURT YOUUUU!" I laughed insanely hard as Legolas removed his hands form over his ears.

"I hate both of you," he said, but was smiling all the same.

"Rickroll'd!" Erin laughed, and I turned back around to see the rest of the Fellowship shooting death glares and looks of confusion at us.

"Dude," I said to my friend, "that probably wasn't the best idea since we're being followed by some evil things."

Erin raised an eyebrow. "We're in the middle of an open river in broad daylight. We were never really hidden in the first place."

"Touche," I nodded, focusing on my rowing again.

oOo

The next time we stopped to set up camp, it was later in the evening. We pulled the boats up onto the gravelly shore and laid out our little makeshift sleeping bags wherever we wanted. Most of the Fellowship slept underneath the trees, and I laid mine out next to Erin's, but I couldn't fall asleep. Honestly, I didn't want to sleep, with the Ring torturing my mind as it had been lately. I caught myself staring at Frodo while I stood by the shore, the cold water lapping up by my toes. I looked away from the hobbit just as Aragorn walked up beside me. "Hey," I said. He stood next to me and nodded as his eyes also scanned the water. "Do you think we'll be able to outrun them?" I asked.

He was silent for a moment, then shook his head. "No...I don't think so." With a glance at me, he said "We will have to fight for our safety soon enough."

I sighed. "Damn. I was hoping that we'd get far enough ahead of them. I...I'm worried. Something in my gut tells me that this is gonna be one hell of a fight against the...whatever they are." I didn't mind telling Aragorn that I was nervous. The guy was like my brother. I felt like I could tell him anything.

"The Uruk-Hai," he said. "They are creatures of Saruman's making...a mix of both Orcs and Goblins. They can travel through sunlight, and cover a great distance with speed. They will be much stronger than the normal Orcs we saw in Moria."

"How soon do you think they'll reach us?"

"I do not know," Aragorn responded. "Possibly three days...but that depends on how often they stop to rest."

I nodded. "Gotcha. And I assume that they're coming for the Ring?"

_"Of course they are," _it boasted in my mind. _"Every being on this Earth wants possession of me...but you are the only one who could handle my power..."_

Aragorn's rough voice brushed the Ring's ego to the side. "Yes. They will be after Frodo." We stood in silence for awhile longer, before Aragorn finally turned around and walked away. I stayed put, but after about five minutes of staring out at the water and seeing nothing but a floating log, I also turned around, stopping when I saw Boromir staring in my direction from behind a large rock.

"What is it?" he asked.

I scowled at him. "I have a name, thank you. It's Kaia."

He glared up at me. "No, not you...that." He pointed behind me, and I turned around to see him pointing at the log, though this time...was that fingers I saw gripping onto the bark? I tensed and reached for my blades, but Aragorn finally answered his question.

"Gollum," he said. "He has tracked us since Moria. I'd hoped we would lose him on the river, but he is too clever a waterman."

"And if he alerts the Enemy to our whereabouts, it will make the crossing even more dangerous," Boromir said.

I turned around and looked over at the redhead. "He'd probably want to steal the Ring for his own first." I looked back out at the log, which had conveniently gotten stuck against a rock on the opposite side of the river. Frodo and Sam started talking about something, but they were too far away for me to hear them clearly. I just kept staring Gollum down, cursing him silently in my mind.

Suddenly, I heard Boromir speak up again. "Minas Tirith is a safer road." I rolled my eyes. _God, is he still on that? _"You know that. From there we can regroup! Strike out on Mordor from a place of strength!" I was about to turn around and tell him to shut up, but then Aragorn said something that surprised even me.

"There is no strength in Gondor that can avail us."

At that bold comment, I glanced over my shoulder at the two of them._ I hope he realizes he just said that to Gondor's biggest fan._

"You were quick enough to trust the elves!" Boromir replied, almost desperately. "Have you so little faith in your own people? Yes, there is weakness, there is frailty, but there is courage also! And honor to be found in Men! But you will not see that!" I watched as Aragorn tried to turn away, but Boromir stopped him by grabbing his shoulder. "You are afraid! All your life, you have hidden in the shadows!"

"Boromir!" I called, turning to both men. "It's not helping our Fellowship if you stand there yelling at him. Aragorn makes the decisions now. Deal with it."

He turned his heated glare to me now. "Who invited you into this conversation? If I were to make the decisions, neither of you women would either be here!"

That did it. I stalked up to him and shoved his hand off of Aragorn. "If you were the one making the decisions, I wouldn't have wanted to be here in the first place," I said lowly. "Just because you're the son of the steward doesn't mean your opinion's always right. Now shut the hell up and go to bed."

Boromir stared at me for a long while like he wanted to hit me, but I knew he wouldn't. Not with Aragorn right behind me, watching us. Eventually, he pushed past me, purposely bumping into my shoulder as he left, still brooding.

I looked at Aragorn, expecting some kind of thank you, but instead he just gave me a look, said "It is your turn to be on watch tonight," and then walked back to camp as well. I frowned, then climbed up and sat on top of the large rock, confused about his reaction. _Shouldn't he be thanking me for defending him?_

oOo

Erin's POV

The next morning, I noticed that there was tension between Aragorn and Boromir. I tried asking Kaia what was up, but she seemed in a mood as well. Deciding that it wasn't any of my business, I settled for climbing back into the boat with her and Legolas and moving on. We traveled down the Anduin for awhile that day, trying to keep the boats as close together as possible. I couldn't help myself from occasionally glancing at the shore and thinking about the approaching Uruks that we'd soon have to fight. It would either be today or tomorrow, I guessed.

At some point that afternoon, in the middle of my pondering, I heard Kaia gasp. "Woah." I looked up and grinned upon seeing a familiar sight.

"The Argonath," I breathed. I had done a collage of the incredible mountain sculpture in art class several years ago, and every time I had watched _Fellowship of the Ring, _it had never ceased to amaze me. Seeing it in person was absolutely breathtaking. Legolas and Kaia also looked just as entrance, all three of us craning our necks to see all the details as the boat slowly drifted by one of the massive feet. And just as we passed them by completely, I looked forward to see the river open up and get a whole lot wider, looking more like a cove now instead of an actual river. In the distance, a spike of rock poked out of the water ahead at the horizon line, piercing the sky. _And the Falls of Rauros up ahead. Looks like Boromir's gonna die today. _I glanced ahead at his boat. As much as he got on my nerves sometimes, it was sad to know that today would be his last day among the living.

Legolas somehow got our boat to pass the others, and we were the first to step onto land as our boat hit the shallows next to what looked like the chunk of a ruined castle. I jumped over the side and landed in the water with a splash, helping him drag the boat further up onto land as Kaia started unloading our stuff. As the other two boats pulled up, I noticed her staring at something, looking slightly entranced. I followed her gaze to see her staring at Frodo, who also had an odd look on his face. My gaze flicked back to her, and she blinked, then returned to what she'd been doing before. _...The frick? What was that about?_

After about ten minutes, Gimli had started a fire, and we were gathered in a small, slightly cleared out area nearby it. Another large piece of ruins was embedded in the ground nearby, and Sam was slouched up against it, dozing. Gimli, Merry, and Pippin were all seated around the fire, the latter eating from his pack (not surprising). Boromir, Frodo, and Kaia were also spaced out, each of them kind of off on their own. Legolas stood at the edge of the camp, eyes scanning the trees around him. I walked up and looked at my friend worriedly as Aragorn started explaining our route. "Everything okay?"

"No..." he said softly. "The evil that has been following us is quickly drawing closer. We do not have much time left." I also looked into the trees, and there was a moment of silence before he finally broke it. "If anything happens...stay with me. So I at least know where you are."

I glanced up at him, and he was looking back at me, genuine concern in his eyes. "Got it," I nodded.

"...festering, stinking marshlands far as the eye can see," Gimli was saying from behind us. I stood for a moment longer at Legolas' side before turning and walking off, going down to the boats to make sure I'd gotten everything.

"That is our road," the ranger responded calmly. "I suggest you get some sleep and recover your strength, Master Dwarf."

"Recover my!-" Gimli sputtered, and I laughed a bit. He started grumbling to himself about how dwarves were awesome and didn't need it, and I turned around just in time to see Legolas talking to Aragorn quietly, so I walked over to Kaia, who was seated on the ground, staring blankly ahead.

"Hey," I said, crouching down next to her. When she didn't respond, I frowned. "Kaia? You okay?" Again, no response. I snapped my fingers in front of her face, and she flinched, looking up at me with a slightly panicked expression. "Kaia? What's wrong?"

She didn't answer for a moment, but when she did, her voice was nothing but a soft, shaky whisper. "...It's calling me..."

"What?" I was totally lost. "What's calling you?"

She looked away again, now scanning the camp for something. "...I need it...I want it...the power..."

Realization hit me like a semi-truck. "Kaia..." I said, my own voice now shaky with fear. "...What are you talking about?..."

She finally looked back at me, and the expression on her face made me cringe, for I saw no sign of human emotion whatsoever in her eyes. "...The Ring..."

"NO!" I shouted, gripping her shoulders tightly. I probably drew some stares, but I didn't care. "Kaia, snap out of it!" I shook her furiously. "This isn't you! You're stronger than that! Kaia!" Still, she didn't respond, her eyes shakily flicking back and forth as she searched for the small golden band. I vaguely heard Merry ask about Frodo, but only continued to shake Kaia in a desperate attempt to snap her out of this. "Kaia, listen to me! You don't need it! You don't want it! It'll destroy you!"

She blinked, and suddenly cocked her head to the side, her features twisting into a confused look. "E...E-Erin?" she asked, like she'd never seen me before.

"Yes! Yes, it's me!" I said softly, near tears at seeing my best friend possessed in such a way. I felt like an idiot for not noticing that the Ring had been getting inside her mind sooner. "Don't listen to it, Kaia! It's not worth it! It's not worth it!"

"...N...no...I-I can't...I don't..." All of a sudden, she shuddered violently, and then slumped forward into my lap. I screamed, and a second later I felt hands on my shoulders.

Looking up, I saw Legolas crouched on the ground behind me, staring at Kaia. "What-"

"Help her! I don't know what happened, she just...she..." I felt tears slip down my face, and I went into full panic mode. I heard someone ask if she was dead, and that only freaked me out even more. "K-K-Kaia..." I stuttered.

"Shhhh," Legolas whispered, comforting me. "It will be all right. Calm down, Erin. Calm down."

I took deep breaths, closing my eyes so that I wouldn't have to stare at her limp body in my lap. The worst possible thoughts were running through my head, and I was just about ready to start flipping tables again when I felt her stir. My eyes snapped open, and I almost died with relief as she coughed and pushed herself back up into a sitting position.

"Oh God...what the hell?" she asked, putting a hand to her head.  
"Kaia!" I cried, nearly knocking her over with a hug. "Oh my gosh...don't you ever scare me like that again!"

"What? What happened?"

I let her go and looked at her. "You don't remember?" At this point, several others were gathered around me, and I still felt Legolas gently holding onto my shoulders. "I came over to talk to you, but...you just looked completely lifeless. And you...you kept muttering that...the Ring was calling you." I said the last but quietly, afraid that mentioning the thing would set her off again.

She thought for a moment, then started smiling. "Oh my God...I did it! Holy shit, I did it!" She jumped to her feet, yanking me with her, and hugged me tight. "Holy mother of God...I won!"

"What?" I shrieked. "Won what?"

"Don't you get it?" she said, releasing me and laughing happily. "That damn ring has been messing with me for so long! Months now! And just a few minutes ago, it was pressuring me more than ever to steal the Ring from Frodo and take it for myself! God...I came so close...so damn close to caving in and listening to the thing...but I drove it away! I remember telling it that it was a liar and wasn't thinking about my best interests at all...and I told it to leave me alone and get the fuck out of my mind! And it went away! I beat it!"

Now I was beaming along with her. "Oh, Kaia! That's awesome!" I hugged her again, but then suddenly realized that Frodo, Boromir, and Aragorn were gone. The battle was about to begin. "Wait...where's Aragorn?"

At this, Kaia also tensed and pulled herself out of my grip. "What? He left? Where is he?"

"He went that way," Pippin said, and I turned around to see him pointing off into the woods behind me. "He went to look for Frodo."

Adrenaline started pumping through me as I pointed to confirm which way I would be running. "That way? You sure?" The ginger hobbit nodded. "Move," I said to Kaia as I grabbed my belt that held my sword and new knives, quickly hooking it around my waist. I stopped and grabbed my bow, gripping it tightly in my hand before starting off after Aragorn.

"Erin!" I spun around to see Kaia staring at me oddly, and Legolas was already running over and getting his own weapons, Gimli not far behind him.

"What? Do you really think I'm gonna let him wander around by himself out there?" Not waiting for an answer, I turned and started jogging up the slight hill, weaving through the trees. About ten seconds later, the elf and dwarf had caught up with me. I shot them both grins. "Ready to kick some Uruk-Hai butt?"

**A/N: I'm so sorry I didn't get this uploaded sooner! I was out of the house all day today and was also very busy yesterday, so I had like...no time to write. ;A; Also, I'm going on a ten-day youth retreat with my church youth group on Thursday, so I basically won't be back until the very end of July/beginning of August. Unfortunately, this means...you guessed it...no updates during that time. :( I hate telling you guys this...though I will try my best to at least finish this book (I'm thinking the next chapter will be the last, but depending on how I write the battle...this may change) before I leave. :) That way I'm not stopping so close to the end of the book, and can start the third book when I return. :D**


	17. Namarië

Innocence & Instinct: Chapter Seventeen

Erin's POV

It seemed like we ran for miles. And to make things worse, it was mostly all uphill, so even by the time we were close enough to hear the sounds of battle not too far off, my legs were tired. I stumbled once, but shook it off as best I could and followed Legolas, who was running in front of me. Gimli was at the rear, and I tried to focus as best as I could on getting to Aragorn quickly.

All of a sudden, the growls of Saruman's freaky hybrids seemed like they were right in front of us, and I looked up with horror to see that they were. I whipped my sword out just in time to clash blades with one, caught a bit off-guard at the beast's incredible strength. He was big and brawny, with massive shoulders. The Uruk roared ferociously in my face, and that pissed me off enough to give me the energy to at least shove him away from me a few steps. He had an advantage, as he was above me on a fairly steep hill, so I robbed him of that by quickly running around him, spinning, and nailing him in the back, killing him off. I noticed that I had started to fall behind, so with a shout I started charging up the hill again, dodging anything that came at me and swinging my sword from side to side, felling Uruks as I went.

Eventually, the hill evened out, and I saw a mass of stone ahead. I recognized it instantly as the ruins that Aragorn was fighting at, and I heard him scream "Elendil!" and then a crash as he jumped off of the side of the ruins and tackled the beasts below him. Legolas darted to the side and came in from the back, emerging from behind the ruins, bow drawn and already shooting. I followed his lead, as did Gimli, and pretty soon we were fighting like a well-oiled machine.

The Uruks were incredibly big. Bigger than they had ever appeared on screen, anyway. Every single one of them was taller than me at least a little bit, so I had to work a lot harder on killing them. One of them came charging at me, ready to swing his blade wide, so I stepped back, let him miss, then stabbed him in the gut with my own sword, smirking a bit as it popped out through his back. Just as he fell, another one came at me, this time with a different approach. He had a bow and arrow, and fired at me just as I got up. Fortunately, his aim was rushed, and the arrow sailed past my head. I whipped out a knife and threw it as hard as I could, hitting him directly in the face. I killed off several more around me before running over to pull it out.

Just as I freed the knife from the dead thing's face, I felt a massive weight slam into my back, knocking the breath from me and crushing me flat on my stomach. I grunted as my chin hit the ground hard and I unintentionally bit the inside of my cheek, tasting blood in my mouth a second later. Because of the added weight of him, we both tumbled to the ground, and before I knew it I was sliding down the hill, rolling over and over with this behemoth still on top of me, trying desperately to stab him with the knife that was in my free hand. My sword had been dropped, but I wasn't too concerned about that now.

Eventually, we rolled right into a tree, and I quickly shoved him off of me, dizzily getting to my feet. Before he could react, I stabbed him twice in the chest and smashed his head against the tree's trunk, watching him fall before turning and running back up the hill. Twice the Uruks tried to trip me, but both of the ones who attempted it soon joined the rest of their friends on the ground. Soon I was back where I had started and grabbed my sword, smiling as I saw that it hadn't been harmed at all. _Thank God for mithril, _I thought as I ran another one through.

There was a shout from behind me, and I spun around just in time to see the head fly of of an Uruk who was ready to stab me in the back, courtesy of Aragorn. I nodded in thanks and turned to face more of the black creatures that surrounded us. I was determined to be more of a help than a hindrance to my friends, who were all fighting very well. I spotted Legolas on top of the ruins, shooting down at the Uruks below. Some of them figured out what was going on and started clambering over towards the stairs that led to the top of the stone structure, so I followed them, trying not to trip over the bodies that rolled down the stairs as I killed each one. Only one of them made it to the top alive, and he was a step or two ahead of me, so I dove forward and grabbed his thick, meaty ankles, yanking hard and pulling him to the ground as I too fell on the stone. I climbed up and drove my sword deep into his back, then ran over next to Legolas and started covering him as he shot down Uruk after Uruk below us.

I was doing well enough for awhile, but at some point I got locked into a one-on-one battle with another one of the Uruk-Hai, and I got so caught up in it that I didn't notice another one coming up on my side until it was too late. He nicked me in the arm with his dirty blade, creating a decent gash and causing blood to start dribbling down the sleeve of my shirt. I finished off my one opponent and turned to the one that had hit me, but not before he shoved me backwards roughly, causing me to stumble right into Legolas, which sent both of us tumbling to the ground.

I landed on top of him and then slid off, quickly pulling him back to his feet. "Sorry!" I shouted to him as he pulled an arrow out of his quiver and stabbed an Uruk in the face with it, pulled it out, then shot another one with the same arrow.

"It's fine!" he called back.

I swung my blade wildly, getting three more Uruks to the ground before yet another one came lumbering over. Not having enough time to get my sword back in the air, I settled with punching him square in the face, hearing the crack of bone as black blood spurted from his nose and got all over my hand. I didn't have enough time to be grossed out as I caught him in the neck with a knife, sending him down. The cut on my arm stung a bit, but I ignored it. _Worry about your injuries when the job is done, _I said to myself as I sliced the arm clean off of one. _There's no time to think about it now._

oOo

Kaia's POV

After Erin disappeared, with Legolas and Gimli right on her heels, the hobbits and I just stood there for a minute before it finally registered in my mind what was happening. "Get your swords!" I shouted. "We've got some bad guys to kill!" I grabbed my own weapons and stepped forward, motioning for the Merry, Pippin, and Sam to follow. "Come on! We've gotta go help Frodo!" As soon as they had gotten their own weapons, we took off, running through the forest in a random direction. I wanted to go a different way then what Erin had gone to cover more ground, but for all the way we ran, it seemed like we weren't finding anything.

When about five minutes of random sprinting had passed, I paused, hands on my knees, catching my breath. "Where...the hell...are we?"

"I don't know," Pippin said, "but we've got to find Frodo and the others."

I nodded. "Come on. Let's keep going." I turned around to see only two hobbits following me when there should've been three. "Wait, where's Sam?"

Merry and Pippin shot each other panicked looks as the three of us spun around in circles, looking for the chubby hobbit. "SAM!" I shouted. "SAM, WHERE ARE YOU?"

Suddenly, Pippin shouted "Kaia! Get down!" I dropped to the leafy ground and looked up the hill to see a line of huge black things running through the forest a good ways away from us. Realizing that they'd soon spot us, I looked around for a hiding spot and motioned for the boys to follow me as we crawled over to a huge, hollow log with a bunch of small weeds growing around it that would hide all of us. I shoved them in first, sitting on the outside in case the Uruk-Hai found us somehow.

"What're we doing?" Merry whispered to me.

"For now? Hiding," I whispered back. "We've got to find someone else who can help us first, because I don't think we can take those things for very long on our own." Merry nodded in understanding, and even though I felt like a complete coward, we sat there for a good five or ten minutes in silence before a very loud scuffling and thud sounded nearby. I mouthed for Merry and Pippin to stay quiet before I poked my head out of the log as much as I dared. Guess who was on the ground, breathing hard, with his back smashed up against a tree to stay hidden?

My eyes widened. "Frodo!" I hissed, but then ducked down again as I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. I peeked out through a tiny crack in the log to see several of the Uruks run right between us, completely unaware that the four of us were hiding there like sitting ducks. As soon as they were gone, I glanced at Merry and Pippin. "Guys, I found Frodo!"

All three of us poked our heads out this time, though it was Merry who called for him this time. "Frodo!"

The blue-eyed hobbit looked over with a scared look on his face. "Hide here, quick!" Pippin said, motioning for him to come over.

"Pip, no!" I said. "We can't fit him in here!"

"But he can't stay out there!" he argued. "Frodo, come on!"

But Frodo just looked at the three of us sadly and shook his head. I frowned. What, was he gonna purposely kill himself or something? "What's he doing?" I asked.

Merry somehow understood his look. "...He's leavin'," he said softly.

"What?" I whisper-screamed. "What do you mean, leaving?"

Pippin wasn't gonna let it happen. "No!" He started to climb out of his hiding spot, despite mine and Merry's attempts to pull him back down. Too late. I heard the guttural shouts of our enemies again and stood, seeing a bunch of them up at the to of the hill, searching for the Ringbearer.

Merry suddenly got an idea. "Run, Frodo. Go." Then, in a moment of either complete madness or complete brilliance, he stood up on top of the log and started shouting at the Uruks. "HEY! HEY YOU!"

Pippin soon caught on to the idea. "OVER HERE!"

Now I got it, too. "COME ON, YOU BASTARDS! COME AND GET IT!"

"THIS WAY!" Pippin shouted, and the three of us took off running, leading the Uruks away from Frodo. I didn't get a chance to look behind me, but I sincerely hoped that this would give Frodo enough time to get away to...wherever the hell he was planning on going. We took off through the woods, literally running for our lives as we dodged trees, chunks of stone, and the like. "It's working!" Pippin cried.

"I know it's working! Run!" Merry responded, and we both gladly obeyed. Honestly, these things did scare me quite a bit. Aragorn had been right; they looked much stronger than the Orcs I'd seen before. I didn't want to fight them unless I absolutely had to.

All of a sudden, I crashed into Merry's back as we suddenly stopped on a stone bridge. I looked up in horror to see even more Uruk-Hai coming at us from the direction we were running. I turned around to go back, but it was useless. They were coming at us from all sides. Pippin and Merry were standing there, frozen still. I whipped out my twin black blades. "Well, don't just stand there! Kill them!" They snapped out of it and also drew their weapons, the three of us standing back to back as the Uruk-Hai approached us. I gulped as one with a huge axe ran up to me and sliced his chest open, spraying their thick, oily black blood onto me. Merry and Pippin were still freaked out, but were fighting anyway.

I thought that we'd be okay, but before I knew it, we were being absolutely swarmed, so I did the only thing I could think to do. "HEY! SOMEONE HELP US! HELP!" I looked around frantically, praying that Erin and the others were close by and could come to fight with us, but no one came.

I heard a roar behind me, and spun around to see Merry get shoved down by an Uruk. He dropped his sword, and the Uruk-Hai quickly brought his blade up, preparing to do him in. "NO!" I shouted, diving forward and stabbing him in the shoulder. The dead body of the Uruk fell forward on top of Merry, who quickly shoved him off and picked up his sword again. He thanked me before going back to killing again.

Turning around, I tried keeping an eye on Pippin and him as even more Uruk-Hai charged us. It seemed like there were hundreds of them, and my heart sank as I stopped momentarily and stared at the dozen more that were now charging down the hill. _No way...we can't take all of them..._

I was interrupted from my thoughts when something hard connected with the back of my head. I fell to my knees, grunting in pain and spun around to see an Uruk standing over me, a malicious grin on his face. He raised his enormous axe over his head, and I closed my eyes as I dizzily tried to lift my blades up as a last defense, but I couldn't get them up in time. Before I knew it, he was bringing his blade down towards my head.

Suddenly, there was a grunt and a thud, and I opened my eyes to find the Uruk on the ground with a knife in his neck. I looked to my left, and there stood my savior, holding out a hand to help me up. "Boromir?" I asked in shock as I got to my feet. "Where did you come from?"

"Not important," he said. "Now come on!" With that, the two of us momentarily decided to call a truce and started fighting the Uruk-Hai as a team.

"Merry! Pippin!" I shouted. "Get behind us!" They did so, and with adrenaline pumping through my veins, I started hacking away at our enemies, focused on protecting the hobbits as best as I could.

oOo

Erin's POV

I was beyond tired, but I knew that I had to keep fighting. I stabbed another Uruk in the chest, then quickly turned and kneed another one in the crotch before slicing his stomach open. The four of us were doing well enough on our own, but now I was starting to worry about Kaia. I thought she would've followed us up to help Aragorn, but she hadn't come. _I guess that means she's with Boromir..._I continued to stab, slice, and sever the heads of the Uruk-Hai, and it seemed like we hadn't even put a dent in their numbers, despite the piles of black carcasses that were appearing everywhere.

I ducked behind a stone pillar to catch my breath. Big mistake, because the next thing I knew I was punched in the collarbone by a passing Uruk-Hai. Falling to the side, I stood my ground as one approached me, giving a roar of fury before springing towards me unexpectedly. I jumped back, but he grabbed the dangling collar of one of my sleeves, drawing a dirty knife and trying to stab me as I jerked back and sucked my stomach in, barely missing the blade.

"Get off me!" I cried, kicking him in the gut. He groaned, but didn't let go, and a second later another one had pounced on my back, sending me stumbling forward. I was now in an Uruk-Hai sandwich, and was being suffocated from being smashed between the two. "Legolas!" I shouted, hoping that he was nearby now that I needed him.

Sure enough, I heard a shout, and then a second later felt the Uruk on my back go limp before he was roughly shoved off of me. I was yanked to my feet, sucking in sweet air and nodding to my elven friend that had saved me. "Thanks."

"Not a problem," he said, quickly shooting the other one that had been grabbing me and killing him for good. Two more Uruks came at us, and I turned and stabbed one in the face with a knife while he shot another one.

Suddenly, the sounds of the chaos around us was briefly broken as I heard the faint sound of a horn ring from far off. Immediately, I stopped what I was doing and took off in the direction of the sound, feet flying and ignoring Legolas' shouts for me to stay behind. All I could think about was Kaia suddenly being in danger of getting captured or killed as I ran through everything, trying to get to her and the others as fast as possible.

oOo

Kaia's POV

The back of my head throbbed, and the rest of my body ached from fighting so much. Another Uruk ran up to me, swinging his jagged blade ferociously. I clashed weapons with him twice before slicing him diagonally across the chest and kicking him away. The next one that came up to attack me threw his fist to punch me, but I ducked out of the way and delivered one of my own into his stomach, then stabbed him in the skull. Boromir paused in the middle of his fighting and blew his horn a second time. I stepped back and looked around frantically, wondering where in the nine rings of hell everyone else was. _God Erin, if you got yourself killed, I'm gonna murder you..._

I looked over at Merry and Pippin. "Go! Run!" All four of us turned and started fleeing from the battle site. Boromir and I were both tiring quickly. There were just too many.

I heard roars behind me, and my heart sunk even more as I saw a massive swarm of Uruk-Hai coming over the hill and running towards us. Boromir's horn was attracting more enemies than help. "RUN!" he bellowed, motioning for me to go as well. I shot him a look and stayed put, then focused on the enemies ahead and started taking them down, one by one as they ran up to me. Boromir was doing fairly well, too, and within a split second Merry and Pippin had joined us. The four of us were fighting as aggressively as we could, but Boromir was by far the best out of us all.

All of a sudden, I turned around from where I had been helping save Pippin's skin to see a giant Uruk charging straight at me. I raised my blades to defend, but he suddenly stopped and dropped to the ground as a sleek white arrow appeared in his side. I looked over to see Erin charging down the hill towards us, shooting Uruks as she went. The rest of them were confused slightly by this new woman entering the battle, but they charged on her nonetheless. She stepped up by my side, putting her bow and arrow away and withdrawing her sword.

"A little late, don't you think?" I asked teasingly as I knocked out one of the Uruks.

"Sorry," she said as she sliced the head off of another one. "We had trouble further up the hill."

I was just about to ask who 'we' was when suddenly I noticed that one of the Uruk-Hai was just standing perfectly still at the top of the hill, preparing at someone. I quickly put two and two together. "Boromir!" I shouted, but he was too far away to hear me.

Merry and Pippin weren't, though. They started frantically trying to get his attention, but to no avail. Boromir was too caught up in his battle. Finally, Merry shot us a nervous glance, looked up at the Uruk, and then ran right up to Boromir, crossing in front of him just as the Uruk-Hai let his arrow fly.

oOo

Erin's POV

Kaia and I both froze as Merry gave a cry of pain, then dropped instantly to his knees. Boromir stopped also, staring in shock down at the blonde hobbit with an arrow in his chest.

"MERRY!" Pippin screamed hysterically, running towards his friend as he fell forward. Boromir, with a cry of rage, leapt forward to kill every last Uruk in his sight, but also stopped as another arrow was fired, this one hitting the Gondorian in the stomach.

"NO!" I screamed. _This can't be happening. This isn't supposed to happen! Merry doesn't die! What the hell? What's going on? I...it can't...no! No! Merry!_ I grabbed Kaia and pulled her behind a tree to hide as more Uruk-Hai stormed down the hill towards Pippin, who was on the ground by his two dying friends.

"Erin?" Kaia looked up at me, voice shaking. "What-"

I suddenly realized how big of an affect this had on the plot of the story. Without Merry...the Ents wouldn't be able to be convinced to go to war against Saruman. I cut Kaia off my placing a hand on her shoulder, my heart breaking already as I spoke through my tears. "Y-You have to go."

She blinked, confused. "What? I don't-"

"I'm sorry, Kaia!" I cried. "You have to do this! Make sure the Ents go to war!" Before she could say anything, I shoved her out of our hiding place and into the path of the Uruk-Hai, peeking out and watching in horror as Kaia was picked up and carried off, along with Pippin, who was still screaming and struggling to escape. My heart shattered as I heard her screams slowly fade into silence, and I sunk to my knees, sobbing. _I can't believe I just did that. She'll hate me forever. She won't understand. _I waited until it was silent before peeking out from behind my hiding place. Merry already laid motionless on the ground, and Boromir had been shot a second time. He was now on his knees, staring up into the eyes of the Uruk-Hai leader, who was drawing back an arrow to be fired at the warrior's face.

I drew my sword and charged just as Aragorn burst through the trees, tackling the Uruk I knew as Lurtz and throwing his aim off as he released it. As the two of them rolled away into a one-on-one battle, I knew it was pointless to try and intervene, so I dropped my sword to the ground and knelt by Boromir, who was gasping for air even now.

Tears streamed down my face as I looked at him. "Boromir...I'm so sorry...I couldn't save you."

He shook his head, as if to say it was no big deal. This only made me cry more, and I picked him up as best as I could and propped him up against the tree that I knew Aragorn would find him by later. "Go...t-to Merry..." he whispered brokenly, and I nodded.

I stood up again and ran back to the little hobbit, dropping to the ground again as I rolled him over. "Merry!" I cried. "Merry, answer me!"

He was already incredibly pale, but when I turned him onto his back he coughed a bit, blood dribbling from his lips. "...Erin..." he whispered.

My chin quivered as I brush a few stray curls from his face. "Oh, Merry..."

"Where's...Pip? A-And Kaia?"

"They've been taken," I said to him quietly. "I'm so sorry..."

Merry was quiet for a long time, and I noticed Aragorn crawl over to Boromir out of the corner of my eye. When the little hobbit finally spoke again, it was almost unheard. "E...Erin...y-you must...promise me something..."

"Anything," I said without hesitation.

He took a few shuddering breaths. "Keep...keep...keep them safe."

My body shook with silent sobs. "I...I will. I'll save them...f-for you." He sighed suddenly, a content smile on his face as he closed his eyes. "...Merry?" I asked after a second. He didn't answer, and I collapsed onto his cold body, burying my face in his chest. _This is all my fault. If I wouldn't have joined the Fellowship, he'd still be alive. Everything would be okay. _I let out a strangled sob. _Why did Merry die? I don't understand! He's not supposed to die! And now Kaia...she's on her own! Because of me! It's all because of me! It's my fault! _I sobbed again, not caring about being quiet anymore.

Before I knew it, I heard footsteps coming up behind me, only to stop suddenly. "Erin?"

I lifted my head and turned around to see Legolas, Aragorn, and Gimli standing there, all three of them looking down at Merry in shock and sorrow. "He's gone," I whispered before dissolving into sobs again.

"Where is Kaia?" Legolas asked. I only cried harder.

No one said a thing for awhile, until Aragorn finally broke the silence by asking Gimli to help him with Boromir's body. The two of them left, leaving Legolas to crouch down next to me. I looked up at him again with my tear-stained face. "...This wasn't supposed to happen," I said quietly.

His brown furrowed. "What do you mean?"

I wiped my eyes, but it didn't do a thing. "In the movie, only Boromir died here. Merry was supposed to stay alive! And he's not! And I don't know why!" I moved closer to him and hugged him tightly, glad that he returned it. "And now Kaia's on her own, because I had to force her into captivity to take his place! And she doesn't even know what she's supposed to do!"

Legolas was quiet for a long time before he responded. "...What does this all mean?"

"I..." I wanted to answer, but couldn't. "...I don't know," I said finally. I was about to pull away, but he didn't let go. I looked up at Legolas, and he was watching me sadly. "I don't know about anything anymore. With Merry...gone...so many things...so much could be different. I don't know," I said again before looking away. Again, Legolas was silent. "I feel so guilty," I whispered into his shirt.

At this, Legolas finally let me go, pushing me back so he could see me clearly. "I do not know how things may turn out in the end now, nor can I guarantee you Kaia's safety. But I do know without a doubt that it is not your fault at all. If Merry died, there was a reason...whether we know that reason yet or not."

I stared back at him, still shaky and broken on the inside. "But-"

"No," he said softly, but firmly. "Erin, it is not your fault. Don't you ever say that." He hugged me again.

I didn't say anything, just looked away until my eyes landed on my sword, the mithril text still shining at the parts that weren't slick with blood. I removed myself from Legolas' grasp and slowly stood up, walking over to it and picking it up, holding it in my hands. "...He asked me to save them," I said as Legolas walked up behind me.

I felt his hand on my shoulder. "Then we should respect his final wish."

oOo

The four of us stood on the shore of the Anduin, watching tearfully as both Boromir and Merry's funeral boats floated down the river. I watched them until they disappeared as dark blobs over the edge of the waterfall. My mind and emotions were still a complete mess. I had no idea how things had ended up this way. I didn't know if the death of Merry was enough to alter the events of the future. Heck, I didn't even know if I would live through this entire adventure. Honestly, I...I just wanted to give up. I wanted to be back in Lothlórien with Haldir. I wanted to be back home on Earth. I wanted to be anywhere but here.

Gimli's voice broke my thoughts suddenly. "What are we to do now? Frodo and Sam have reached the eastern shore, and we have no way to cross the river."

"Frodo's fate is no longer in our hands," Aragorn said quietly.

"Then it has all been in vain," the dwarf responded. "The Fellowship has failed."

"Not if we hold true to each other," Aragorn said, now with a bit more confidence.

I turned around and walked over to the three of them. "We've got to go find Kaia and Pippin. They can't have gotten too far ahead." Legolas shot me a knowing smile.

Aragorn nodded, and turned around to start gathering up a few more supplies. "Leave all that can be spared behind. We travel light." As he slipped his knife into its sheath, he looked up at us with a grin. "Let's hunt some Orc."

"Yes!" Gimli cried, and also ran over to where Aragorn was, picking out the food we'd take with us.

I smiled a tiny bit, then turned back to face the water. A moment later, Legolas appeared next to me. "We will find her, Erin. Do not worry."

I sighed. "At this point...I'm more concerned about the events to come." We were quiet for a moment, before he spoke again.

"You do not have to come with us, if that is what you wish. You can go back to Lórien...and Haldir." I actually considered that for a moment, until he continued. "After all, you might break a nail during our travels. We would not want that, of course."

I shot him a friendly glare and punched him lightly in the arm. "And you might get your perfect little braids messed up. That would be a nightmare."

He laughed. "So I assume that means you are coming with us?"

I smiled back at him. "Of course I am." With that, the two of us turned and walked back up the stony beach, securing our weapons and starting to follow Aragorn and Gimli as they began running back into the woods. As we started the next leg of our journey, I smiled and whispered to just myself, realizing how stupid my previous thoughts about the adventure had been. "And I wouldn't have it any other way."

**A/N:Well, there we go! We're done with Book Two, and also with the events taking place in _The __Fellowship of the Ring_! :D The next book, "Staying Strong," will be started...possibly today, actually. :) I'm still in the mood to write, even after that dramatic ending. From the bottom of my heart, I thank everyone who's reviewed, followed, faved, or even read a single paragraph of this series. It means so much to me that you've taken time out of your day to view my work. 3 I love you all! Until next time..._namari__ë__. _:)**

**~Erin**


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